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FAVORITE FAIRY TALES 
RETOLD 



Favorite Fairy 
Tales Retold 

The First of a Series of Children’s 
Classics Especially Adapted 
for Story-Telling 

By 

JULIA DARROW COWLES 

o 

Author of The Art of Story-Telling/* Stories to Tell/* 
Robinson Crusoe Reader/* Our Little Athenian 
Cousin of Long Ago/* Our Little Roman 
Cousin of Long Ago/* “ Our Little 
Spartan Cousin of Long Ago.** 



CHICAGO 

A. C. McCLURG & CO. 

1915 


Copyright by 
Julia Darrow Cowles 
1915 




Published March, 1916 



MAR 30 1915 


S9. 3 , 1$aU l^rintUig dhi.. (Sliintjpi 


©ci,a:3!)7:J36 

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PREFACE 


In bringing together these old classics for children, 
the author of the book has sought to apply the rule 
laid down in her preceding book, The Art of Story- 
Telling, and to paint each story against some universal 
background of truth. The occasional exceptions are 
the stories of pure fancy or delicious nonsense. 

None of the stories depict physical cruelty or 
violence, from which children instinctively shrink; 
neither is craftiness or fraud or lying rewarded. Yet 
the stories are full of romance and adventure, and of 
the old-time fairy lore which children love. 

Changes in the original stories have been freely 
made when necessary to bring them into conformity 
with the above conditions, for these old folk and fairy 
tales belong to all peoples and all times; and, as in 
the olden days, so now, the stamp of the individual 
story teller may be renewedly impressed upon them. 

It is hoped that the stories may prove a source of 
true joy to the children who read, as well as to story 
tellers and listeners. 

J. D. C. 


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CONTENTS 


PAGE 

THE THREE LEMONS Edouard Laboulaye 1 

(Cruelty repaid by kindness) 

THE TWELVE MONTHS Edouard^ Laboulaye 11 

(Unselfishness rewarded) 

INGER’S LOAF Anderson 21 

(Pride humbled: unselfishness brings happiness) 

OLE SHUT-EYES AND HIS DREAM UM- 
BRELLA Anderson 32 

(Pure fancy) 

THE NIGHTINGALE Anderson 41 

(Value of true worth) 

THE SIX SWANS Grimm 48 

(Steadfastness of purpose) 

THE ENCHANTED MEAD Korean Folk Tale 55 

(Nonsense) 

THE WHITE CAT Countess lyAulnoy 63 

(Fancy) 

THE MILLER’S DAUGHTER Slav Folk Tale 71 

(Unselfishness rewarded) 

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. .Madame de Villineuve 79 
(Kindness brings happiness) 

THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT Grimm 89 

(Service rewarded) 

THE HEALING WATER Grimm 99 

(Success through courtesy) 

THE LAD WHO WONDERED 

George Webbe Dasent 109 

(Value of observing) 

THE LAD WHO VISITED NORTH WIND 

George Webbe Dasent 117 

(Sturdy perseverance rewarded) 

[ vii] 


CONTENTS 


THE GOOSE-GIRL .,..Orimm 

(Unfaithfulness punished: gentleness rewarded) 
THE SPRING IN THE VALLEY. . . .Irish Folk Tale 
(Selfishness punished) 

THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX Folk Tale 

(Greed punished) 

OLD MOTHER HOLLE Grimm 

(Patience and willingness vs. selfishness and lazi- 
ness) 

ERIC NO-LUCK Russian Folk Tale 

(Fancy) 


FADE 

125 

183 

140 

148 

155 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES 
RETOLD 






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Favorite Fairy 
Tales Retold 


THE THREE LEMONS 

O NCE upon a time there was a prince 
named Carlino who lived with his 
father, the King, in the Palace of Rubies. 

The King was growing old, and he wished 
— Oh, how he wished ! — that his son would 
marry. And he told his wish to all his 
people. 

“ He must have a wife who is young, and 
rich, and beautiful,” the King said, “ but 
more than all this, she must be loving and 
good.” 

So they searched all the country over for 
a wife for Carlino; but the Prince only ran 
[ 1 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


away to the woods, and declared that he 
would not marry at all. 

The King was sad and sorry indeed. But 
one day a strange thing happened. 

As the King and the Prince sat together 
at dinner, the Prince cut his finger with a 
knife. Three drops of blood fell into a dish 
of cream at the Prince’s plate. The Prince 
stared into the dish, then suddenly ex- 
claimed, “ My father, I see here a vision of 
a beautiful maiden whose skin is as fair and 
smooth as cream, and whose cheeks and lips 
are red as these drops of blood. I am going 
to seek her. When I have found her I shall 
marry her, and bring her to the Palace of 
Rubies.” 

With that he mounted the most magnifi- 
cent horse in all the King’s stables, and 
galloped away. 

A long, long time he journeyed. He vis- 
ited towns and villages, he entered castles 
and cottages, but nowhere did he see the 
maiden of his vision. 

[ 2 ] 


THE THREE LEMONS 


At last after days, and weeks, and months 
of journeying, he came to a place called 
World’s End. There was nothing but a line 
of shore, and beyond it stretched sea, and 
sky, and mist. Carlino looked about. An 
old man sat on the shore alone. 

“What sea is this, good father?” asked 
Carlino. 

“It is the sea without a shore,” replied 
the old man. “ Away beyond the horizon, 
lost in the mist, is an island. Three sisters 
dwell on the island. But none who go there 
ever come back.” 

“ But a Prince may succeed where others 
have failed,” said Carlino, and he stepped 
into a boat which lay on the shore. 

No sooner was the Prince seated than the 
boat shot through the water like an arrow 
from a bow. In a short time Carlino came 
within sight of the mysterious island. 

Its coast was rough, and its cliffs were 
rugged, but the moment the boat touched 
the shore, Carlino began to climb. 

[ 3 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

When he reached the top he found three 
huts. He knocked at the door of the first. 

‘‘ I can do nothing for you,” cried a snarl- 
ing voice. ‘‘ But go to my sister who lives 
beyond.” 

Car lino knocked at the door of the second 
hut. 

“ I can do nothing for you,” cried a plain- 
tive voice. “ But go to my sister who lives 
beyond.” 

Carlino hurried on, and knocked at the 
door of the third hut. 

Perhaps I can help you,” cried a pleas- 
ant voice, and a young woman opened the 
door of the hut. 

Carlino told her his story, and when he 
had finished she gave him three lemons, and 
a beautiful knife with a handle of mother- 
of-pearl. 

“ Take these,” she said, “ and hasten back 
to your father, the King. When you reach 
the borders of your own country, stop at 
the first spring of water, and there you must 

[ 4 ] 


THE THREE LEMONS 


cut in two these lemons. As you cut each, 
there will spring forth a beautiful fairy, 
with skin like cream, and lips like drops of 
blood. She will ask you for a drink of 
water. Give it to her quickly, or she will 
vanish from your sight. But if the first and 
the second leave you, be sure to capture the 
third. If you do not, I can do nothing more 
to help you. But if you give her the water 
quickly, she will stay with you, and love you, 
and you shall make her your wife.” 

Prince Carlino thanked the young woman, 
folded the precious lemons safely in his man- 
tle, and hastened to his boat. 

He met with many adventures on the way, 
but at last he reached the borders of his 
father’s kingdom, and came to the spring 
of water. 

His heaii beat fast as he took his knife 
and cut the first lemon. 

Out sprang a wonderful fairy, who asked 
Carlino for a drink of water. But he, poor 
fellow, was so amazed at the wonderful sight 
[ 5 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


that he stood a moment as though rooted to 
the ground. And immediately the fairy dis- 
appeared. 

‘‘ Ah, why did I lose so beautiful a crea- 
ture ! ” cried Carlino. 

Then he cut the second lemon. 

Out sprang a fairy as beautiful as the 
fii’st, and asked for a drink of water. But 
again Carlino was so amazed that he moved 
but slowly, and the fairy disappeared. 

“ Woe is me,” cried Carlino, “ if I cap- 
ture not the third! ” 

Then he cut the remaining lemon, and 
there sprang forth the most beautiful fairy 
of them all, and before she had finished 
asking for water, Carlino was upon his 
knees, offering her a brimming cup. 

The fairy, whose skin was like cream, and 
whose lips were like drops of blood, smiled 
and thanked the Prince, and after di*inking 
the water, gave him her hand. 

Carlino was half afraid that it was a 
dream from which he would awaken, but the 
[ 6 ] 


THE THREE LEMONS 


fairy promised to marry him, and to go with 
him to the Palace of Rubies. 

“ But you must go as a true princess,” 
said Carlino. “ Wait here while I hasten to 
my father. I will return for you with 
attendants, with horses, and with royal 
splendor. Then shall you appear before the 
King in a manner befitting a princess.” 

So Carlino hastened away, and the fairy, 
feeling frightened at being left alone in the 
woods, sprang into a tree, and hid among 
the leaves. 

A few moments later a black slave came 
to the spring to draw water. She was ugly 
of face and of temper, for she had never 
known anything in all her life but hard labor 
and abuse. 

As she stooped to fill her jar, she saw in 
the clear water the reflection of the fairy’s 
beautiful face. She looked up. 

“ Why are you there? ” she cried. 

The fairy, who had known only love 
and happiness all her life, and who trusted 
[ 7 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


everyone replied, “ I am waiting for the 
Prince to come and make me his bride.” 

Then a wicked idea came to the mind of 
the old slave. She would shake the fairy 
into the stream and take her place in the 
tree. Then when the Prince came she would 
say that she was the fairy, and that a witch 
had changed her to her present ugly form. 

She raised her arm to shake the tree, but 
the fairy understood what she meant to do, 
and quickly flew away in the form of a dove. 

When the Prince returned he was quite 
beside himself with grief and amazement; 
but the old slave declared that she was the 
fairy in disguise, and at last he took her to 
the Palace of Rubies. 

“ I will have no black slaves inherit my 
throne,” stormed the King; but his Prime 
Minister told him that the ugly negress was 
a fairy in disguise; that such changes had 
often occurred ; and that no doubt the bride 
would become as beautiful as before, when 
the marriage ceremony was performed. 

[ 8 ] 


THE THREE LEMONS 


So at last the King consented, and prepa- 
rations for the wedding were begun. But 
the King and Prince Carlino were in great 
distress. 

One day, just before the wedding. Prince 
Carlino noticed, growing close to the palace 
wall, a little lemon tree which had not been 
there before. He asked about it, and the 
chef of the palace told him : “ A dove 
lighted near the kitchen window, and as I 
needed one more for our feast, I killed it. 
Three drops of blood fell upon the ground, 
and almost at once this lemon tree sprang 
up.” 

Prince Carlino looked closely at the little 
tree, and behold ! there were three lemons on 
its branches. He seized them and ran to his 
room, opened the knife, which he always car- 
ried, and filled a jeweled cup with water. 
Then, trembling, he cut the lemons as 
before, and, as before, a fairy sprang from 
each. The first and second disappeared, but 
to the third he offered the cup of water — 
[ 9 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

for the third fairy was his true bride, come 
back to him again. 

Every one in the palace declared that the 
wicked negress should be put to death, but 
before this was done, the fairy said to the 
King, “ I am sure you will grant me a wed- 
ding gift.” 

The King was so happy that he answered, 
“ I will give you anything that you ask.” 

“ Then,” said the fairy, “ give me the life 
of this woman now condemned to death.” 

“ Truly it is a poor gift,” said the King, 
“ but I have given my word. But why do 
you wish it? ” he added. 

“ Ah,” said the fairy bride, “ she has never 
known anything but hard labor and abuse. 
I will give her a happier life, and she will 
find goodness through loving.” 

“ My dear,” said the King, “ now I know 
of a truth that the bride of Prince Cariino 
is as good as she is beautiful.” 

So the Prince and the fairy were married, 
and they lived happily ever after. 

[ 10 ] 


THE TWELVE MONTHS 


O NCE upon a time a poor peasant 
woman was left a widow. She had a 
daughter whose name was Zloboga, and a 
little serving maid whose name was 
Dobrunka. 

Now Dobrunka was good and kind, and 
as beautiful as she was good; while Zloboga 
was proud and cruel. 

Dobrunka was given all the hard tasks, 
and all the scoldings, while Zloboga did only 
fine stitching, and was petted and praised. 

One day in January there was to be a 
party in the neighborhood. Zloboga could 
go, for though her mother was so poor, she 
had a fine party dress; but Dobrunka could 
not go, for she had nothing fit to wear. 
Dobrunka was very unhappy, but neither 
Zloboga nor her mother cared for that. 
When the day of the party came, Zloboga 
[H] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


declared that she must have a bunch of vio- 
lets to wear. “ They would just match the 
color of my dress/’ she said. 

“ But violets do not blossom in January! ” 
exclaimed Dobrunka. 

“ I care not! ” said Zloboga, with a stamp 
of her foot. “ You are to find me a bunch 
of violets; and do not come back till you 
bring them! ” 

Poor Dobrunka was pushed out into the 
cold, and the door was closed and bolted 
behind her. 

She hurried to the woods, for she knew 
not where else to go. The wind blew and 
the snow drifted, but as she reached the bare 
woods, she saw a light farther on. She hur- 
ried toward it, and suddenly she came to a 
circle of twelve stones. There was a fire 
in the midst of the circle, and upon each of 
the twelve stones sat a man clothed all about 
in a cloak, with a hood drawn down to his 
eyes. Three of the cloaks were of dazzling 
white, three were of tender green, three of 
[ 12 ] 


THE TWELVE MONTHS 

a golden yellow, and three of a rich, deep 
purple. 

Dobrunka stopped in astonishment, but 
she was so cold that after a moment she 
spoke. 

“ Kind sirs,’’ she said, “ may I come to 
your fii'e? I am almost perished with the 
wind and the cold.” 

An old man with a long white beard, who 
held a staff in his hand, answered her : 

‘‘ Come and welcome,” he said. “We are 
the twelve months of the year, and I am 
January. Will you tell us who you are, and 
why you come here alone? ” 

“ I am Dobrunka,” she answered, stretch- 
ing her hands out to the fire. “ I am sent 
here by Zloboga and her mother to gather 
violets.” 

“ Violets in January! ” exclaimed the old 
man. “ What notion is this? ” 

“ It is very foolish, I know,” replied 
Dobrunka, “ but Zloboga and her mother 
will beat me if I go back without them.” 

[ 13 ] 


FAV QUITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


At that the old man handed his staff to 
a figui’e clad in green. 

“ This is a matter for you to manage. 
Brother March,” he said. 

At that the figure in green arose, took the 
staff, stirred the fire, and rapped gently 
upon the ground. 

Immediately the air grew warm, the grass 
sprang up, the leaves came forth, and all 
about in the woods the purple violets blos- 
somed. 

With a cry of delight Dobrunka gath- 
ered all that her hands could hold of the 
fragrant flowers, and thanking March pret- 
tily, she hastened away. 

When she reached home Zloboga and her 
mother were astonished, but Zloboga pinned 
the blossoms in her dress and went away to 
the party. She did not say so much as 
“ thank you ” to Dobnmka. 

The next day, having stayed out late at 
the party, Zloboga was more than usually 
cross and hard to please. 

[ 14 ] 


THE TWELVE MONTHS 

“ Nothing tastes good! ” she exclaimed as 
she pushed away her plate. “ I wish I had 
a dish of strawberries. Dobrunka/' she 
added, “ where did you find the violets yes- 
terday? ” 

“ In the woods,” replied Dobrunka. 
“ They were thick upon the ground.” 

“ Then go and get me some strawberries,” 
commanded Zloboga. “ Nothing else will 
satisfy me.” 

“Strawberries in January!” exclaimed 
Dobrunka. “ There were no strawberries in 
the woods.” 

“ I care not! ” said Zloboga with a stamp 
of her foot. “You must get me a dishful; 
and come not back till you find them.” 

Once more Dobrunka was pushed out into 
the cold, and the door was shut and bolted. 

Frightened and cold, she again made her 
way to the woods. It was bitterly cold ; but 
when she reached the edge of the woods she 
saw again the shining light. 

She made her way to it, and holding out 
[ 15 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


her hands she said, as before, “ Kind sirs, 
may I warm myself at your fire? I am 
almost perished with cold.” 

Again January bade her welcome, and 
asked her what she sought. 

‘‘ I am sent for a dishful of strawberries,” 
she said, “ though it seems but a foolish 
errand.” 

“Strawberries in January!” exclaimed 
the old man. “ And will you be beaten if 
you go back without them? ” 

“Yes, indeed!” cried poor Dobrunka, 
“ and the door is bolted against me till I 
bring them.” 

Then January took his staff and handed 
it to one of the figures clad in a cloak of gold. 
“ Brother June,” he said, “ you must man- 
age this.” 

Then June arose, and taking the staff he 
stirred the fire till all the air grew warm. 
Then he tapped upon the ground, and the 
gi’ass grew gi'een, the leaves burst forth, and 
the earth was dotted with red, red berries. 

[ 16 ] 


THE TWELVE MONTHS 


“ Oh, oh,’' exclaimed Dobrimka, clasping 
her hands, “ how good you are to me ! ” Then 
she fell upon her knees, and soon she had 
filled her apron with the ripe fruit. 

Thanking June in her prettiest manner, 
she hastened home, and poured the berries 
out before Zloboga and her mother. 

“ Where did you find them? ” asked Zlo- 
boga coldly. And when Dobrunka told her 
that there were many of them in the woods, 
she ate them greedily, but not a “ thank 
you ” did she say to Dobrunka. 

The next day it was apples that Zloboga 
wanted, and as before Dobrunka was sent to 
fetch them, and the door was bolted. 

Again she ran to the woods, facing the 
cold north wind and stumbling through the 
drifts of snow. But the bright light still 
shone, and when she reached it the circle of 
figures sat about the fire as on the two previ- 
ous days. 

“ May I come again to your fire, kind 
friends?” asked Dobrunka. 

[ 17 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


“ You are welcome/’ said January. ‘‘ But 
what is your errand today? ” 

“ Today I must find apples,” said 
Dobrunka, “ and I shall be beaten if 1 bring 
them not back.” 

Then J anuary handed his staff to a figure 
clothed in a gown of deep purple, and as he 
did so he said, “ Brother September, this is 
a matter for you to manage.” 

Then September stirred the fire with the 
staff, and the air grew warm, and trees put 
forth their leaves, and the apple trees cov- 
ered themselves with pink blossoms. Then 
the petals fell, and in their place hung many 
red-cheeked apples. 

“ Shake the tree, Dobrunka,” said Sep- 
tember, and Dobrunka shook the tree. Two 
ripe apples fell, and she picked them up, 
thanked September with a smile, and ran 
away home. 

“ OrJy two apples ! ” exclaimed Zloboga, 
as she entered. “ Why did you not bring 
more? ” 


[ 18 ] 


THE TWELVE MONTHS 

“ Only two fell when I shook the tree,” 
said Dobrunka. 

Zloboga and her mother never before had 
eaten apples of so delicious a flavor. 

The next morning Zloboga declared. I 
am going to the woods today. I want more 
of those delicious apples. I am going to 
find the wonderful tree upon which they 
grow, and shake down all its fruit.” 

“ Let Dobrunka bring them to you,” said 
her mother; but Zloboga was wilful, and in 
spite of the cold and the snow, she set out to 
find the wonderful tree and gather all its 
fruit. 

She ran away to the woods, and her 
mother, fearing that some harm would come 
to her, followed. ^ 

But Zloboga did not see the shining light 
that had guided Dobrunka, and she lost her 
way in the snow and the cold. 

Dobrunka wondered and wondered, when 
Zloboga and her mother did not come back ; 
and after many days — for no one ever 
[ 19 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

heard of them again — she became mistress 
of the little cottage, the cow, the garden, and 
the chickens. 

And one day a neighbor’s son came to her 
door and asked her to marry him. 

And they lived in the little cottage, and 
were happy ever afterward. 


[ 20 ] 


INGEll’S LOAF 


O NCE upon a time a little peasant girl 
named Inger was sent to the home of 
a rich family in the country to act as serv- 
ing maid. 

Now Inger was a veiy pretty girl, but 
she was proud and selfish, and this had 
caused her father and mother a great deal 
of sorrow. 

The rich people, to whom she was sent, 
were good to little Inger. They dressed her 
as prettily as they did their own little daugh- 
ter, and they treated her as kindly as though 
she, too, were their own. 

One would think that this would have 
caused Inger to be kind and loving, but in- 
stead she became more and more proud and 
selfish. 

One day, when she had been away from 
her home many months, her employer said to 
[ 21 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

her, “ Inger, it is quite time that you visited 
your father and mother.” 

So Inger put on her very best shoes and 
her prettiest dress, and away she started. 

‘‘ They will be surprised to see how grand 
I look,” she said to herself as she ran along. 

When she reached the edge of the village 
she saw groups of young men and women 
walking about and talking; and seated upon 
a rough stone bench she saw her own mother. 
On her mother’s back rested a bundle of 
sticks which she had picked up for fuel. 

“ What will all those people say, to see 
me talking to an old woman with a bundle 
of sticks on her back!” exclaimed Inger, 
looking at her own pretty clothes. So, with- 
out speaking one word to her mother, she 
turned and ran back to her employer in the 
country. 

Many months passed, and then her em- 
ployer said again, “ Little Inger, it is time 
you visited your father and mother.” 

So, once more, Inger put on her very best 
[ 22 ] 


INGER^S LOAF 


shoes and her prettiest dress; and just as 
she was about to start, her employer handed 
her a fine fresh loaf of wheaten bread. ‘‘ It 
is for your father and mother,” she said. 
“ They will like the fresh sweet loaf.” 

Now the peasants lived on coarse oat 
cakes, and fresh wheaten bread was a very 
great treat. So Inger took the loaf and 
started on her way. 

Presently she came to a spot where the 
gi’ound was soft and wet. Inger stopped 
and looked down. “ I shall spoil my pretty 
shoes if I step in the marsh,” she said to 
herself, “ and I want to look fine when I 
reach the village. I know what I will do! 
I will drop this loaf in the marsh and jump 
upon it; then I shall keep my shoes quite 
clean.” 

“ But your father and mother would like 
the wheaten bread,” a voice seemed to say. 
‘‘It will be a rare treat to them; and they 
ofttimes have to go hungry, you know.” 

Inger looked at the loaf, then she looked 
[ 23 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


at the marsh, and last of all she looked at her 
shoes. 

“ I cannot help that,” she said. “ I must 
save my pretty shoes.” With that she threw 
the loaf into the marsh and sprang upon it. 
But when she would have leaped from the 
loaf to the opposite side of the marsh, she 
could not. Her feet were held fast by the 
loaf, and in a moment it sank out of sight 
and pulled little Inger down with it. 

And where do you suppose Inger found 
herself? 

She found herself in the home of the 
old Marsh- wife,, who is half-sister to the 
Elf -king. 

Now the Marsh-wife and the Elf-king 
live quite close to Bogey-land, and all sorts 
of queer things happen in that part of the 
world. But poor Inger was in a sad plight 
foi visiting strange countries. The mud of 
the marsh had soiled her pretty shoes, her 
fine dress, and even her face and her hair. 

“ What a dirty looking child! ” exclaimed 



INQER*S LOAF 


an old woman who sat in the Marsh- wife’s 
kitchen. 

Inger gazed at the old woman, and she 
did not like her. The old woman was work- 
ing very fast at the strangest piece of em- 
broidery. It was made entirely of lies, which 
she wove with rapid fingers. By her side 
were piled a heap of necklaces. These were 
made from idle words which she had picked 
up and strung together. She loved to give 
these necklaces away, for they always caused 
the wearers no end of trouble. 

On the other side of the old woman lay a 
pile of slippers. She had made them from 
gad-about leather, and these, too, she loved 
to give away, for the wearers of them could 
find no rest. 

Indeed, she was a very wicked old woman, 
and Inger began to tremble as she looked at 
her. 

Presently the old woman put down her 
embroidery and looked at Inger through a 
pair of very big eye-glasses. It seemed to 
[ 25 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

Inger that with those eye-glasses the old 
woman could see right into her heart. 

“ Yes/' said the old woman at last, “ she 
will make a good statue for my court. May 
I have her? ” 

“You are quite welcome to her," replied 
the Marsh-wife. “ I do not know why she 
came here. But what is it, that she stands 
upon? " 

“ It looks like a wheaten loaf," said the 
old woman, and she was quite right; for 
Inger’s feet were still fast to the loaf, and 
neither one of them could she move. 

“A statue!" said Inger to herself. 
“ Statues are beautiful. I suppose she 
wants me because I am pretty! " 

But no sooner had she thought this than 
she remembered that she was covered with 
mud, and that the old woman had called her 
a dirty child. 

But she had no more time in which to won- 
der, for the old woman had already gathered 
up her work, and was whisking her away to 
[ 26 ] 


INGER*S LOAF 


Bogey-land — foi that was where the old 
woman lived. 

The next that Inger knew, she was stand- 
ing — still on her wheaten loaf — in a great 
court among many other statues; for she 
was now a statue herself. She could think, 
and she could turn her eyes and look about, 
but aside from this she was as stiff as a 
stone. 

The statues about her were not pretty, 
but they were quite as pretty as poor Inger 
in her covering of brown mud. 

Now Inger had plenty of time to think, 
for she could not run about, or talk, or play. 
She coidd only stand in the old woman’s 
court in Bogey-land. 

At first she thought only about herself, 
and of how imhappy she was. But she could 
not shed a tear, no matter how wretched she 
felt. 

She watched the old woman at her work, 
and she thought of all the unhappiness and 
trouble she was making for other people. 

[ 27 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


She saw her fashioning her gifts — embroid- 
eries of lies, and necldaces of idle words, 
and slippers of gad-about leather — and she 
thought what a wicked woman she was. 
Then she wondered how all the other statues 
came to be in the old woman’s garden, and 
if they were as unhappy as she. 

But after awhile Inger did not give so 
much time to these unpleasant thoughts. She 
began to think, instead, about her father and 
mother, and her kind employer. She remem- 
bered how good they always had been to her. 
Then she remembered how she had turned 
away from her mother when she had a bun- 
dle of sticks upon her back ; and how she had 
thrown the wheaten loaf into the marsh when 
her father and mother had perhaps been 
hungry. 

All at once she exclaimed within herself, 
“ Why, I am just as bad as this old woman! 
I was so vain and selfish that I made every 
one else unhappy, for I tried only to please 
myself.” 


[ 28 ] 


iNGER^S LOAF 

The more Inger thought about this, the 
sorrier she grew, and at last she said, “ Oh, 
if I could only give so much as a wheaten 
loaf to someone, how happy I should be! ” 

Then something very strange happened. 
The stiff statue which had been Inger, 
seemed all at once to melt, and away from it 
there flew a sober little brown bird. And 
the bird winged its way to the upper air. 

It was a very quiet, timid little bird, and 
it could not sing. But it crept into a crevice 
in a wall and watched the other birds about 
it. 

It was winter, and the waters were frozen, 
and the fields were covered with snow, so 
the birds could find but little to eat. 

But on Christmas day our little brown 
bird saw the people of the village tie a sheaf 
of gi’ain to a pole. Then they raised the 
pole upright, and went away and left it. 
And oh! how the birds flocked around and 
ate the grain — for that was just what the 
people had wished. 

[ 29 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

The little brown bird hopped out with the 
rest, and ate a kernel of wheat. Then a 
happy thought came to it, and away it flew. 

It flew along the roads where loads of 
grain had jolted; it lighted outside kitchen 
windows where crumbs were thrown; and 
everywhere that it went it ate just one kernel 
or one crumb, and it called the other birds to 
come and take all the rest. 

Here and there the little brown bird flew, 
hunting for food and calling the other birds 
whenever it found a bit to eat. It was a 
very happy bird. Its only sorrow was that 
it could not sing. 

But one day, when it had divided a single 
cmmb with a tiny wren, the little brown bird 
heard a voice say, “ Little brown bird, you 
have given away enough crumbs and seeds 
to make a whole wheaten loaf.’’ 

At that the little brown bird felt some- 
thing throbbing in its throat, and the next 
moment it was pouring forth a beautiful 
song of thanksgiving; a song so sweet, and 
[SO] 


INGER^S LOAF 


pure, and clear, that the children playing 
in a nearby yard stopped to listen. 

And as they looked, the bird lifted its 
wings — and it was all pure white — and it 
flew happily away into the sky. 


[ 31 ] 


OLE SHUT-EYES AND HIS 
DREAM UMBRELLA 


N ight is drawing on, and little Hial- 
mar is sitting quietly by the fireside, 
on a little footstool. 

Now Hialmar does not hear a single foot- 
fall, but just the same, someone is coming 
up the stairs — someone in a coat of silk 
that shimmers all red and blue and green. 
It is Ole Shut-Eyes, the wonderful teller of 
dreams. He has taken off his shoes, so he 
>vill not be heard, and he opens the door so 
that not a sound reaches Hialmar’s ears. 

Puff ! Before Hialmar can raise his eyes 
to look. Ole Shut-Eyes has sent into them 
an invisible spray; and then Hialmar’s lids 
close, his head droops, and he is carried off 
to bed. 

But Ole Shut-Eyes steals softly in after 
him, and sits down beside his bed. 

[ 32 ] 


OLE SHUT-EYES 


Hialmar has been a good boy all day, so 
Ole takes from under his arm a beautiful 
umbrella, all covered with pictures, and he 
raises it over Hialmar’s bed. 

Ole Shut-Eyes carries two kinds of um- 
brellas. One is for naughty children, and it 
has no beautiful pictures at all, and then 
there are no beautiful dreams. But Hial- 
mar’s umbrella has wonderful pictures, and 
Ole begins at once to tell him about .them. 

“ First,” said Ole Shut-Eyes, ‘‘ I am 
going to make things smart.” As he said 
thisj the plants in the pots in Hialmar’s room 
stretched up into trees: the branches blos- 
somed forth with wonderful roses, and all 
the room looked like a lovely arbor. There 
was fruit on the trees, too, and it tasted like 
the richest jam. And the vines were covered 
with buns, just bursting with plums. Oh, 
it was delightful! 

But in the midst of all these wonders, 
there came a noise of grumbling; and it 
came from a drawer in the table. It was the 
[S3] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

drawer in which Hialmar kept his school 
books and slate. 

Ole Shut-Eyes opened the drawer. The 
slate was twisting itself into the most 
wretched shapes. “What is all this?” ex- 
claimed Ole. 

“ Oh, I am in great misery,” said the slate. 
“ There is a wrong figure in one of tny sums, 
and try as 1 maj^ I cannot change it.” 

A little pencil, tied to the slate by a bit of 
string, was tugging with all its might. “ I 
would change the figure if I could,” it cried 
in a creaky voice, “ but I can’t.” 

At that the copy book began to lament. 
Ole turned the leaves. He saw a nice stiff 
row of capital letters, and a nice stiff row of 
little letters. These were the letters that 
were printed in the book. But beyond these 
were other letters that Hialmar had made. 
They leaned this way, and they leaned that 
way; and some of them were almost tum- 
bling off the line on which they were sup- 
posed to stand. 


[ 34 ] 


OLE SHUT-EYES 


Ole Shut-Eyes looked closely at them. 
He could see that Hialmar had tried to make 
them like the copy, but his small fingers 
could not make the lines go where they 
should. 

“We would like to be stiff and straight,” 
wailed the letters, “ but we are so crooked 
we can’t stand up.” 

“ Dear me ! ” said Ole Shut-Eyes, “ I 
shall have to give you a dose of medicine.” 

“Oh, oh; no, no!” cried all the letters 
together, and they stood up as stiff as any- 
thing. 

“ Now I will drill you like soldiers,” said 
Ole. “ One, two; one, two; one, two.” 

Oh, how stiff they stood, as they marched 
up and down the page! — But I must tell 
you that the next morning when Hialmar 
awoke and opened his copy book, they were 
just as crooked as ever! And the smn 
hadn’t come right, either. 

The next thing that Ole Shut-Eyes did 
was to touch a picture that was upon the 
[ 35 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


wall, and the painted birds in the trees began 
to fly about and sing, the grass and flowers 
nodded in the breeze, and the river began 
flowing toward the sea. 

Hialmar put his foot up into the picture 
— and there he stood under the trees! Be- 
fore him on the water was a little boat, 
painted red and blue, and it had silver sails. 
Hialmar stepped into it, and away it sailed 
down the stream. 

Pretty fishes splashed about in the water, 
and swam after the red and blue boat. The 
fishes had scales of silver and gold. 

Birds sang to Hialmar sls he passed 
through deep woods, and the trees told him 
stories — dark stories about robbers and 
witches. 

Then the little boat sailed past an open 
space where there was a neat cottage. A 
young woman came out of the cottage and 
sang a song to him — and she was the woman 
who had been Hialmar’s nurse, and the song 
she sang was one she had sung to him many, 
[S6] 


OLE SHUT-EYES 


many times before, when she had held him 
in her arms. 

As the song died away, the woman and the 
boat both seemed to vanish. 

The next that Hialmar knew. Ole Shut- 
Eyes was introducing him to a little gray 
mouse that was on her way to a wedding. 

“ Two of the mice who live beneath your 
mother's pantry floor are to be married 
tonight,” said the mouse pohtely. “ Would 
you like to attend the wedding? ” 

“ Veiy much,” said Hialmar, “ but how 
am I to get there? I am too big to go 
through a mouse hole.” 

“ Leave that to me,” said Ole Shut-Eyes, 
and in a twinkling Hialmar found himself 
even smaller than a mou^e. He hastily put 
on his tin soldier’s uniform, which fitted per- 
fectly and was very grand. 

“ Now step into this thimble of your 
mother’s,” said the mouse. “It will make 
an excellent carriage, and I will draw you 
to the wedding.” 


[ 37 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


So Hialmar seated himself in the thimble 
and was driven away to the wedding. 

Perhaps the thimble carriage was a teeny 
bit small. At any rate Hialmar turned over 
in his bed and muttered, “ Are there any 
more stories? ” 

“ There is no more time for stories,’’ said 
Ole. “ Tomorrow is Sunday, and I must 
get the world all polished up. 

“ First of all, I must see that the broAvnies 
up in the church tower are burnishing the 
bells. They must ring clear and true to call 
the people to worship. 

“ I must see that the breezes have brushed 
the dust from the grass and flowers. They 
must be fresh and sweet. 

“ Those things are easily attended to,” 
said Ole, “ but it isn’t so easy to polish the 
stars. 

“ You see,” he continued, “ flrst of all I 
have to get them down, and take them in my 
apron to polish them. But it doesn’t do to 
be careless. No, indeed! I must number 

[ 38 ] 


OLE SHUT-EYES 


each star, and each star-hole, so that I can 
put them back in their proper places. If I 
didn’t do that they would not stick, and 
we should have too many falling stars.” 

At that, the picture of Hialmar’s gi’eat- 
grandfather, which hung upon the wall of 
the room, spoke. 

“ Now, I say, Mr. Shut-Eyes,” it said, “ I 
am quite willing that you should tell Hial- 
mar stories, but really, you must not puzzle 
his brains with such stories as this. The 
stars cannot be taken down to be polished, 
you know ! They are planets, like our 
earth! ” 

But Ole Shut-Eyes smiled wisely. 

“ Thank you, Great-Grandfather,” he 
said, “ but I am much older than you, and I 
know many things which you would not 
believe. 

“ However,” he added, “ if you do not 
approve of my stories, you may tell some 
yourself.” And with that Ole Shut-Eyes 
folded up his dream umbrella and vanished. 

[S9] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


And Hialmar determined that the next 
night, he would turn great-grandfather’s 
picture to the wall. 


[ 40 ] 


THE NIGHTINGALE 


M any long years ago the Emperor of 
China made a very great discovery. 
He was reading in a book — which was a 
very unusual thing for him to do — and he 
read the words, “ But the most wonderful 
thing in all the Empire of China, is the song 
of the Nightingale.” 

“What is this!” cried the Emperor. 
“ The Nightingale in my own empire, and I 
never have met her! Who is she? I must 
find her. I must hear her sing! 

“ It is strange,” he added, “ that people 
of other countries know more about my 
Empire than I do myself. Now and then 
one may really learn something from 
books! ” 

So the Emperor summoned a lord-in-wait- 
ing, and said to him, “ I have just read about 
the song of the Nightingale; but I do not 

[ 41 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


know her. See that she appears at court 
this evening. I must hear her sing.’’ 

The lord-in-waiting bowed very low, and 
hastened away. He never had heard of the 
Nightingale, either, and had no idea where 
she was to be found. 

But he ran all through the castle, up stairs 
and down, through corridors and chambers, 
and everywhere he inquired about the Night- 
ingale. But no one knew who she was, or 
where she could be found. 

The lord-in- waiting bowed low before the 
Emperor, and told him this. 

“What!” exclaimed the Emperor, “the 
song of the Nightingale is the most wonder- 
ful thing in my kingdom, and no one knows 
who she is! She must be brought to the 
court this evening. If she is not, the whole 
com’t shall be trampled upon! ” 

“Tsing-pe!” cried the lord-in-waiting; 
and again he searched the castle, and half the 
court ran after him — for they did not want 
to be trampled upon. 

[ 42 ] 


THE NIGHTINGALE 


At length a simple little kitchen maid 
heard the uproar, and timidly she said, “ I 
know the Nightingale. I can show you 
where she lives. Indeed, I have often heard 
her sing.” 

At that the whole court set out on the 
heels of the lord-in-waiting, and he in turn 
ran after the little kitchen maid. 

They left the castle, passed through the 
beautiful gardens of the Emperor, and at 
last found themselves in the deep green 
woods. None of the court ever had been 
there before. 

Then the little kitchen maid pointed to a 
small gray bird, perched upon the branch of 
a, tree. “ There is the Nightingale,” she said. 

The lord-in- waiting could scarcely recover 
from his surprise. He never had dreamed 
that the Nightingale would prove to be a 
sober little gray bird. But he delivered the 
Emperor’s message, and bade the little bird 
appear at court that evening. 

“ I sing best among the green trees,” said 
[ 43 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


the Nightingale. “ But if the Emperor 
wishes, I will come.” 

The castle was decorated for the occasion, 
and a wonderful golden cage was made for 
the Nightingale. 

At the appointed time she came, and when 
she sang, her song was so clear, and pure, 
and sweet, that tears formed in the Em- 
peror’s eyes, and ran down upon his cheeks. 

When she had finished the Emperor was 
so pleased that he said she should remain at 
com’t. She should live in the golden cage, 
and should have many attendants to wait 
upon her. He even offered to hang his 
golden slipper about her neck. But this 
the Nightingale declined. 

She would have been much happier in her 
home in the green wood, but what the Em- 
peror commands must he done. So she lived 
at coui’t in a golden cage, close beside the 
Emperor’s couch, and she sang whenever the 
Emperor commanded. 

One day a packet came addressed to the 

[ 44 ) ] 


THE NIGHTINGALE 


Emperor. “ Perhaps it is another book,” 
said he. But when it was opened, he found, 
not a book, but a most marvelous bird. It 
was made of silver and gold, studded with 
precious jewels; and inside the bird were 
springs and wheels, so that when they were 
wound, the bird could sing. 

Truly this were a new marvel, and when 
the Emperor had heard the jeweled bird 
sing, he cared no more for the true nightin- 
gale, and she was allowed to fly away to her 
home in the green woods. The jeweled bird 
was placed in the golden cage, and the 
golden slipper was hung about her neck. 

Many times a day the golden bird was 
wound and made to sing for the Emperor. 
It was much grander than a living bird, for 
anyone could hear a living bird sing. 

But one morning when the attendant 
wound the springs, there was a sudden whirr. 
The spring had broken. The jeweled bird 
could sing no more. 

It was sent away to be mended, but no one 
[ 45 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

in all the Emperor’s kingdom knew how to 
repair it. A watch maker did the best 
that he could; but after that it could be 
wound only once a year, and then it had to 
be done very carefully. 

Many, many moons passed, and then one 
day it was whispered that the Emperor was 
very ill. It was not thought that he could 
live. 

He lay very still and white on his silken 
couch, and his attendants were frightened 
and thought him dead. So they hastened 
away to tell the people that the Emperor 
was dead. 

But when they had gone, the Emperor 
turned his head toward the little golden bird 
and whispered, “Music: I want music.” 
But the httle bird could not sing, for there 
was no one there to wind it. 

“ Music, you little golden bird,” whis- 
pered the Emperor. “ I have loaded you 
with gifts. Sing to me now.” 

But the jeweled bird could not sing. 

[ 46 ] 


THE NIGHTINGALE 


The Emperor turned his head. What was 
that at the open window? 

The little gray Nightingale had heard that 
the Emperor was ill, and she had flown to 
the window to sing to him. And in a moment 
her sweet, clear song filled all the room with 
melody. 

She sang of life, and hope, and as she sang 
the Emperor’s cheeks grew ruddy, and his 
strength returned. 

The door opened, and the attendants came 
softly in to care for the dead Emperor. 

But what was their astonishment when he 
arose and said, “ Good morning.” 


[ 47 ] 


THE SIX SWANS 


O NCE upon a time there were seven 
children who lived alone in a great 
castle, hidden deep in the heart of a forest. 

Six of the children were boys ; the seventh 
was a girl. Their father was the King who 
ruled over the country, and he loved his chil- 
dren dearly. But, to save his own life, after 
the death of the Queen, their mother, he was 
forced to marry a woman who was a witch. 
He knew well that she would not be kind to 
his children, so he placed them in the castle 
in the forest, and went secretly to visit them 
as often as he could. 

But after a time the witch-wife began to 
wonder who it was that the King went away 
to see, so she gave a sum of money to one of 
the servants, and the seiwant told her about 
the children of the King, and how she could 
find her way to the castle in the forest. 

[ 48 ] 


THE SIX SWANS 


So one day, when the King had gone out 
hunting, the witch- wife followed the secret 
path through the forest, and when she came 
near the castle she made a great tramping, 
as though a heavy man were walking. 

The sister, who was busy in the house, did 
not hear; but the six boys, who were outside, 
heard the footsteps, and thinking it was their 
father coming, ran down the path to meet 
him. 

Then the witch- wife threw over each one 
a little white shirt, and as soon as the shirts 
touched them, they were changed into white 
swans, and they flew away to the water. 

Now the servant had not told how many 
children the King had, so the witch- wife 
supposed that she had changed them all into 
swans, and she went away home satisfied. 

But the King’s little daughter had looked 
from the window of the castle just in time 
to see her brothers changed into swans, and 
had watched them fly away. 

She was quite broken-hearted at the sight, 
[ 49 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


and went sadly about the castle all day. But 
at evening she heard a fluttering of wings, 
and suddenly six white swans flew down to 
the castle, and lighted before her. 

They blew upon one another, and their 
feathers were stripped off like coats, and her 
six brothers stood before her in their own 
forms. 

One of them spoke quickly. “We can 
remove our coats of swan’s feathers and 
resume our own forms for only fifteen min- 
utes,” he said. 

“ But what can I do to help you,” ex- 
claimed their sister, wiping away her tears. 
“ Is there no way that I can bring you back 
to stay? ” 

“ The way is too difficult,” answered one 
of the brothers. 

“ But tell me! ” exclaimed the girl. 

“ There is but one way,” replied her 
brother. “ For six years you must let no 
word or sound fall from your lips, and dur- 
ing the six years you must stitch together 
[ 50 ] 


THE SIX SWANS 


leaves of the starwort, and make us six shirts. 
But it is too difficult,” he added. ‘‘ You can- 
not do it.” 

Then, as the fifteen minutes were spent, 
the six brothers resumed the form of swans 
and flew away from the castle. 

“ I will do it,” said the sister. And then 
she closed fast her lips and ran away from 
the castle. 

She traveled a long distance till she came 
to the place where the starwort grew. Then 
she picked a quantity of leaves and began 
to sew. 

Day after day she spent picking the 
leaves of starwort and sewing them with the 
finest stitches possible. No word passed her 
lips, and she neither sang nor laughed. 

One day while she was thus occupied, a 
Prince with his retinue, passed her as she 
worked. 

The Prince turned back and spoke, but 
though the maiden smiled, she shook her head 
and said no word. 


[ 51 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


The Prince was puzzled, but no answer 
could he get to his questioning. 

Day after day he came back, for the silent 
maiden fascinated him, and at last he asked 
her to marry him. She shook her head, and 
laid her finger on her silent lips. But she 
smiled as she did so, and the Prince became 
the more determined, to make her his bride. 

Each day he came to see her, and she 
began to watch for his coming, and to count 
the hours after he had gone. 

Then, one day, when he again begged her 
to marry him, she smiled and laid her hand 
in his. 

The Prince was so happy that he sent at 
once for a priest, and they were married, 
and he led her to his father’s house. 

But though she was so happy, the wife did 
not speak, and each day she sewed on the 
shirts of starwojt. 

But the Queen, the mother of the Prince, 
did not like the choice that he had made ; and 
as she was a wicked woman, she invented 
[ 52 ] 


THE SIX SWANS 


evil stories about his wife, and told them to 
the Prince. 

At last the Queen convinced him that his 
wife was a witch; and though he still loved 
her, and it almost broke his heart to do it, he 
was obliged to consent to the Queen’s plan 
that his wife be placed in a dungeon, and 
left there the remainder of her life. 

When he told his girl- wife this, she threw 
her arms about him and tears rained down 
her face, but no sound passed her lips. Then 
they wept together, and although the Prince 
told her that he loved her as well as ever, 
he said that the King and Queen had deter- 
mined that she must be sent to the dungeon, 
and he could not alter their plan. 

With trembling hands the young wife 
gathered up the six little shirts of starwort 
— for she had almost completed the last one. 
Only a sleeve remained unfinished, for the 
sixth year was almost passed. 

As they led her out of the castle, there was 
heard a sudden rush of wings, and six beau- 
[ 53 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


tiful swans lighted in the path before her — 
for at that moment the sixth year was ended. 

Instantly she threw over them the six 
shirts of starwort, and immediately the coats 
of feathers dropped off, and six handsome 
young men stood in the path — though one 
of them, on whom the unfinished shirt had 
fallen, had a swan’s wing in place of an arm. 

Then their sister turned with a glad cry 
to her husband, the Prince, and told him of 
the enchantment which the witch- wife had 
thrown over her brothers, and of the penance 
she had done to break the enchantrnent. 

Then the Prince took her in his arms, and 
led her and her brothers back to the castle, 
where there was great feasting and rejoic- 
ing. And the Prince loved his wife more 
dearly ever after. 


[ 54 ] 


THE ENCHANTED MEAD 



NCE upon a time there was an old 


woman lived upon a river bank, where 
the ferry boats crossed. She was poor, and 
often had only a howl of rice for her dinner. 

She had no family, unless one may call 
a faithful dog and a mischievous cat, a 
family. 

But dog Trophy, Thomas the cat, and the 
old woman lived very happily, and were the 
best of friends. It was only now and then 
that they went hungry to bed. 

One day a stranger stopped at the old 
woman’s cottage. “ I am weary and 
thirsty,” he said. “ Can you give me refresh- 
ment? ” 

Now the old woman had only a bit of 
bread, and one last sup of mead, but seeing 
the stranger’s weariness, she offered them 
heartily. 


[ 55 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


“ Thank you/' said the stranger, when he 
had finished. “ I cannot offer you money, 
but if you will drop this bit of amber into 
your jug, you will never find it empty of 
mead." And handing the old woman a clear, 
yellow stone, he disappeared. 

Wondering and curious, the old woman 
dropped the bit of amber into the jug. At 
once the jug felt heavy — for it was full of 
meadi 

The old woman was delighted, and so 
plainly did she show her joy, that dog 
Trophy, and Thomas the cat seemed to 
imderstand her good fortune, and capered 
about to express their pleasure. 

Now good times came to the little cottage, 
for — since the jug was always full, yet 
required no filling — the old woman set up 
a little shop where travelers, crossing the 
ferry, could stop for a bit of bread and a 
sup of mead. 

The cat and the dog often talked things 
over at night, and they understood about 
[.‘56 ] 


THE ENCHANTED MEAD 


the magic bit of amber, for not once had they 
gone to bed supperless since the stranger had 
left the curious stone. 

The jug was always guarded by one of 
the three. 

But one day the old woman took up the 
jug — and it was empty! She shook it. No 
merry stone tinkled against its side. 

Then the old woman knew that in pour- 
ing the mead for a customer, the bit of amber 
must have been poured out, too. But into 
whose cup or jug it had gone, she had not 
the least idea. 

She was filled with despair. I have no 
other means of support ! ” she said sadly. 
“ Must I go hungiy again in my old age? ’’ 

Dog Trophy’s lively expression changed 
to one of deep woe, and his tail dropped de- 
jectedly. Thomas the cat lost his usually 
cheerful grin, and lashed his sides with a 
bristling tail. 

At night, as usual, they talked matters 
“ I know,” said Thomas, “ that I 
[ 57 ] 


over. 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


could find the bit of a stone by the smell, if 
I could get somewhere near it. But how is 
one to begin? ” 

“We will set out,” said dog Trophy, 
“ and visit every house in the neighborhood. 
Let us start at once, while our old mistress 
sleeps.” 

“Ready!” said Thomas, and otF they 
went. 

They visited every house on that side the 
river, but not once did Thomas get a whiff 
of the precious amber. 

“ The river is frozen,” said Trophy, at 
length. “ Let us cross to the other side. We 
have spent many nights in searching, but we 
must not give up yet.” 

So together they crossed the river, for the 
ice was firm, and began their search on the 
farther side. 

Dog Trophy made the acquaintance of all 
the dogs, while Thomas went inside and 
called upon the house cats. 

One night, as he was walking stealthily 
[ 58 ] 


THE ENCHANTED MEAD 


along a beam in one of the houses, he caught 
a sniff of the longed-for odor. It told him 
that the stone was near, and he was so de- 
lighted that he almost lost his hold upon the 
beam. But it was well that he did not, for 
he would have fallen straight upon the bald 
head of the man who owned the house. 

He regained his balance and followed the 
scent, which grew stronger and stronger the 
farther he went. 

At last he came to a heavy box, the cover 
of which was fitted so closely that he could 
not move it. Try as he would, the cover 
could not be raised. 

So Thomas went outside to consult with 
dog Trophy. 

“ The box cannot be moved, and the lid 
caiinot be lifted,” said Thomas. “ But I am 
sure the stone is inside.” 

“ There is but one thing to do then,” said 
dog Trophy, who was very wise. 

“And what is that?” asked Thomas, 
respectfully. 


[ 59 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


• “ Get the mice to gnaw a hole in the box,’* 
said Trophy. 

At that Thomas gi’inned. “ And how will 
we win a favor from the mice — we, who 
chase and eat them on every occasion? ” 

“ Let us sign an agreement not to touch 
a rat or a mouse for a whole year,” said 
Trophy. 

And that is what they did — though they 
had some trouble in getting a hearing with 
the mice. 

But it was a very good bargain, the mice 
admitted; and so a hole was gnawed in the 
box, and a very small mouse squeezed 
through and brought out the bit of amber. 

How dog Trophy, and Thomas the cat, 
rejoiced! And how glad their mistress 
would be! 

They hurried down to the river bank, but 
when they reached the river they saw that 
the ice was gone! Spring had come while 
they were cariying on their search. There 
was no way for them to get back except to 
[ 60 ] 


THE ENCHANTED MEAD 

swim. But Thomas, of course, could not 
swim! 

But dog Trophy was never at a loss for 
a plan. “ Get on my back,” he said, “ and 
hold the bit of amber in your mouth. What- 
ever happens, do not lose the amber. I will 
carry you safe across.” 

With that he plunged into the water, 
while Thomas clung fast to his long hair. 
Thomas wanted to laugh at this new way of 
riding, but he dared not, for fear he might 
lose the stone. 

They were almost across, when a sudden 
splash of water flew straight into Thomas’ 
face. He sneezed — when down dropped 
the precious stone into the river. 

Trophy saw it go, and dived for it — and 
such a wetting as Thomas got! But the 
stone had disappeared. 

Thomas got to the bank somehow, and 
ran up a tree to dry his fur. Then he arched 
his back and spit at dog Trophy for giving 
him such a ducking; while dog Trophy 
[ 61 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

barked furiously up the tree at Thomas for 
losing the precious stone. 

When he had barked his throat quite raw, 
dog Trophy went sadly down to the river 
bank. A man was standing near, fishing. 

Presently the fisherman drew out a large 
fish, and thoughtlessly threw it upon the 
bank. 

A familiar scent greeted dog Trophy’s 
nostrils, and instantly he caught up the fish 
and dashed away with it to his mistress. 

The old woman was glad indeed to see 
her faithful dog, and glad also of a good 
meal of fish. But when she opened the fish 
to dress it, what do you suppose she found? 
Her precious bit of amber lay in the stomach 
of- the fish! 

There was happiness and plenty in the 
little cottage once more — but dog Trophy, 
and Thomas the cat, have never been good 
friends since. 


[ 62 ] 


THE WHITE GAT 


O NCE upon a time, many years ago, a 
little girl was given by her mother to 
the fairies, and they were to bring her up. 
The fairies were good to her, and she was 
very happy. She grew up, and was accom- 
plished and very beautiful. She was a Prin- 
cess, for her father was a King, and her 
mother a Queen. 

But one day the Princess disobeyed the 
fairies and made them very angry with her, 
so, for a punishment, they changed her into 
a beautiful White Cat. 

They gave her a palace to live in — a 
most wonderful palace which was hghted by 
the sparkling of hundreds of precious jew- 
els — and a retinue of servants to wait upon 
her, but each servant, like herself, had been 
changed into the form of a cat. 

One day there came to the palace gate a 
[ 63 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


young man — a Prince — who had been 
sent away from home on a strange errand. 
His father, who was King of a distant coun- 
try, had sent him out to find the most 
remarkable dog in all the world. 

The Prince had traveled far when he saw 
the beautiful palace with walls of glass hav- 
ing all the tints of the rainbow, doOrs of 
gold, and lights formed by dazzling sap- 
phires, rubies, and emeralds. Never had the 
Prince seen so marvelous a building, and he 
rang a bell at the entrance, wondering as 
he did so who it could be that lived in the 
midst of such luxury and beauty. 

What was his surprise, then, upon being 
admitted to the palace, to discover that all 
the inmates were cats! 

But never had he been treated with 
greater hospitality. * A beautiful room was 
placed at his disposal, a bath of perfumed 
water was prepared, and later a dinner of 
the richest foods was set before him. He 
noticed, however, that two plates were laid 
[ 64 ] 


THE WHITE CAT 


at the table, and he wondered with whom he 
was to dine. But while he wondered, a beau- 
tiful White Cat came gracefully into the 
room and took her seat at the table. 

“ Prince,’’ she said, addressing him, “ I 
hope my servants have made you comfort- 
able. While we eat, will you tell me from 
what country you come, and something of 
your journey? ” 

The Prince was filled with amazement 
but he was careful not to show his surprise. 

He told her of the strange errand upon 
which he had been sent by his father, the 
King. “ I have a year in which to find the 
most remarkable dog in the world,” he 
added. 

“ Make yourself comfortable here as long 
as you like,” said the White Cat graciously. 
“ Perhaps you may find the dog you are in 
search of near by.” 

The Prince thanked her, for he was 
charmed by her gracious manner, and filled, 
also, with curiosity. 

[ 65 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


He lingered at the palace day after day, 
for it was the most wonderful and the most 
beautiful place that he ever had seen, and 
each day he wondered more and more at the 
charm and good breeding of the White Cat, 
and at her many accomplishments. 

But one morning the thought came sud- 
denly to him, that he had but three days 
more in which to find the most remarkable 
dog in the world, and return with it to his 
father’s castle. He was filled with remorse 
at having lingered so long. 

“ Do not regret your stay,” said the White 
Cat. “ 1 have found for you the most re- 
markable dog in the world, and you shall 
take it to your father.” 

With that, she handed him an acorn. The 
Prince, in wonder, held the acorn to his ear, 
and to his joy and amazement heard within 
it the faint barking of a dog. 

Bidding the White Cat farewell, he has- 
tened to the King, and in his presence 
opened the acorn. Out jumped the tiniest 
[ 66 ] 


THE WHITE CAT 


and most perfect little dog imaginable. It 
could easily jump through a lady’s finger 
ring. The King was delighted, and wanted 
all his court to see the wonderful dog. 

But a few days later he again called his 
son to him and said, “ My son, I must have 
a piece of muslin fine enough to be drawn 
through the eye of a needle. You, I am 
sure, can find it for me. You may have a 
year in which to secure it.” 

The Prince was rather glad of another 
opportunity to travel, for of course he went 
directly to the palace of the White Cat ; and 
to her he told his second quest. 

“ Have no fear,” said she. “ My servants 
can produce the muslin for you, and we shall 
be glad to entertain you until it is time for 
you to return to your father.” 

So for another year, the Prince remained 
in the palace of the White Cat, enjoying 
the beauty and comfort of its wonderful 
gardens, its baths, and its works of art. But 
most of all, the Prince enjoyed the company 
[ 67 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


of the White Cat, whom he found more in- 
telligent, more witty, and more charming in 
manner than any lady of his father’s court. 

At the end of the second year, the White 
Cat came to him, and placing in his hand an 
apple seed, said, “You must return now to 
your father’s castle. Open the seed in his 
presence — for it contains the object of 
your search.” 

“ But how can I leave you, my good 
friend? ” said the Prince sorrowfully. “ And 
how can I ever repay you? ” 

“ You may be sent upon a third quest,” 
said the White Cat in a soft voice. “ To 
have you return will fully repay me.” 

So the Prince rode away to his father, 
and when he reached the castle and opened 
the apple seed, he drew forth four hundred 
yards of muslin, so fine that it could easily 
be drawn through the eye of the finest 
needle ! 

The King was delighted, and filled with 
wonder; but yet he was not satisfied. 

[ 68 ] 


THE WHITE CAT 


“ You must go upon one more quest, my 
son,” he said, “ and then, if you are success- 
ful, I will give you my kingdom, and you 
shall rule in my stead. Bring back with 
you, at the end of a year, the most beautiful 
Princess in all the world, and the kingdom 
shall be yours.” 

So once more the Prince set out — 
straight to the palace of the White Cat. But 
this time he was sad, as he repeated his 
father’s words. 

“ Have no fear,” said the White Cat. 
“ All will be well at the end of the year.” 

But never did a year pass so quickly as 
this one. There were feasts and music, fire- 
works, and a thousand entertaimnents pro- 
vided by the attendants of the White Cat. 

It lacked but a few days of time for the 
Prince’s return, when he exclaimed sorrow- 
fully, “ I would rather stay with you, dear 
White Cat, than marry the most beautiful 
Princess in the world, and rule over my 
father’s kingdom. Become a mortal for 
[ 69 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


my sake, or use some magic to turn me also 
into a Cat.” 

At the words, a sudden flash blinded the 
Prince, and when he again looked, there 
stood before him, not the White Cat, but a 
girl of radiant beauty. 

With a dazzling smile she cried, “ You 
have broken, by your words, the spell which 
the fairies threw over me. I am, indeed, a 
Princess, but when I angered the fairies, 
they changed me into the form of a White 
Cat.” 

As she spoke, her attendants — who had 
also been changed back to their human forms 
— came into the room. And they made the 
Princess ready, and she went with the happy 
Prince to the castle of his father, the King, 
where they were married, and hved happily 
ever after. 


[ 70 ] 


THE MILLER’S DAUGHTER , 


NCE upon a time there was born to a 



rich nobleman, a beautiful baby boy, 
and there was great rejoicing and feasting 
in the castle. 

When the nobleman’s friends came to- 
gether for the christening, the fairies came 
too. 

Each fairy brought a gift, but one of 
them was in a bad humor, and when it was 
her turn to bestow her gift, she said, “ Your 
son shall grow to manhood only upon one 
condition: his feet must not touch the floor 
before he is twelve years of age.” 

The nobleman was greatly distressed at 
this, but it could not be altered ; so he had a 
cradle made of gold, with high sides, and he 
hired the most careful nurses in all the coun- 
try around, to wait upon and watch his boy. 

And the boy grew, and was strong and 


[ 71 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


sturdy; and everyone about the castle loved 
him and watched over him carefully. 

At last his twelfth birthday drew near, 
and his father ordered a splendid feast. 
There was a great bustle of preparation, 
while everyone rejoiced. 

But in the midst of this happiness and 
confusion there came a sudden noise of grief 
and crying, and the walls of the castle began 
to tremble and shake. 

At this, the attendant who was with the 
boy became quite frantic with fear. She 
jumped to her feet to see what all this could 
mean, and the boy fell to the floor. 

Instantly the cries ceased, the walls of the 
castle stood firm as before; but the noble- 
man’s son could not be found. Search was 
made everywhere, but no trace of him was 
left. 

The nobleman offered a reward of three 
hundred crowns in gold to anyone who 
could bring him news of his son ; but no one 
came to claim the reward. 

[ 72 ] 


THE MILLERS S DAUGHTER 


Then the nobleman shut himself up in his 
castle; his gardens were neglected, and all 
his joys seemed gone. 

Now at a little distance from the noble- 
man’s castle, there lived a miller with his 
wife and three daughters. 

One day the eldest daughter went for a 
walk in the woods. She grew very tired, 
and was wishing for a place to rest, when 
close beside her path she saw a neglected 
summer house that belonged to the estate of 
the nobleman. 

She pushed aside the vines and bushes, 
and as she did so she discovered, fastened to 
the door of the summer house, a notice, long 
yellowed by the sun and rain. It was the 
offer of three hundred crowns in gold for 
news of the nobleman’s son. 

“ I wish I might earn the reward,” said 
the girl. “ It would make me a fine dowry, 
and then I could marry well.” 

She pushed open the door, and what was 
her surprise to see a fire laid ready to light, 
[ 73 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


a table set with dainty food, and a couch 
draped with fine tapestries. Over the fire- 
place some letters were carved, which read, 
“Of comforts here, partake; but of thy 
speech beware! ” 

“Of comforts here, partake,” she re- 
peated. “ Then I may rest and eat.” 

She sat down to taste the food, but as she 
did so, there came a sound of sighing and 
crying. She was frightened, but when she 
turned toward the door a young man stood 
before her. 

“ For whom are the fire, and the food, 
and the couch?” asked he. 

“ For myself,” answered the girl proudly. 

As she said this the young man looked 
troubled, then — as suddenly as he had come 
— he was gone. 

When the girl turned again, the fire, the 
table, and the couch had vanished as com- 
pletely as the young man had done. 

She returned home, but she said nothing 
to her sisters about her adventure. 

[ 74 ] 


THE MILLEWS DAUGHTER 


A few days later the second daughter took 
a walk through the M^oods; and she, too, be- 
coming weary, chanced upon the same sum- 
mer house. 

The notice was still upon the door, and 
as she read it she said, “ I wish that I might 
gain the reward. I could dress well all the 
rest of my life upon three hundred gold 
crowns, and I should have rich friends.’’ 

She pushed open the door, and to her sur- 
prise found a fire laid ready to light, a table 
spread with dainty food, and a richly draped 
couch. And over the fireplace she read the 
words: “Of comforts here, partake; but 
of thy speech beware! ” 

She was very hungry, and as she was used 
to plain and simple fare, she sat down at 
once at the daintily laid table. 

But before a mouthful of food had 
touched her lips, she heard sighs and a sound 
of weeping. Springing up, she faced a 
young man, who said to her, “ For whom is 
the fire laid? ” 


[ 75 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


“ For myself,” answered the girl. 

“For whom is the table spread?” he 
asked. 

“ For myself,” she answered again. 

“ And for whom is the couch prepared? ” 
he asked again. 

“ For myself,” was the reply. 

The young man sighed, looked troubled, 
then vanished from sight. 

And when the girl turned back, nothing 
was to be seen of the fire, the daintily set 
table, or the couch. 

But neither did she say anything at home 
of the strange adventure. 

Several days passed, and then the young- 
est daughter went for a walk in the woods. 
She, too, chanced upon the summer house, 
as her sisters had done. 

“ I wish I might win the reward,” she 
said, as she read the weather-stained notice 
upon the door. “ Father should have a new 
wheel for his mill, and mother should have 
a silk gown.” 


[ 76 ] 


THE MILLER* S DAUGHTER 

She pushed open the door, and saw to her 
surprise the fire, the table, and the couch. 
Then she read the words: “Of comforts 
here, partake; but of thy speech beware!” 

“ AVhy, these are for me, then,” she said ; 
“ and one should always be careful of his 
speech.” 

She lighted the fire, and sat down at the 
table; but as she did so she heard a sound 
of sighing and crying. She turned about 
and there stood a young man. 

“ For whom is the fire? ” he asked, look- 
ing troubled. 

“You are welcome to warm yourself by 
it,” said the girl. 

“ And for whom is the table prepared? ” 
he added. 

“ For you, if you are hungry,” she re- 
plied. 

“ And for whom is the couch made 
ready? ” he questioned again. 

“ For you, if you are weary,” she an- 
swered once more. 

[ 77 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


At that the young man’s face lighted with 

joy- 

“ Ah,” he cried, “ I am the lost son of the 
nobleman in the great castle. The fairy 
threw a spell over me, and I could not re- 
turn to my father until some mortal showed 
me a kindness. You have done so. Come.” 

He took the miller’s youngest daughter 
by the hand, and led her to his father. The 
nobleman was happy beyond words. 

The miller had his new mill wheel; the 
miller’s wife had a new silk gown; the noble- 
man’s son took the miller’s youngest daugh- 
ter for his bride; and they all lived happily 
ever after. 


[ 78 ] 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


O NCE upon a time there was a rich 
merchant who had three daughters. 
The youngest was called Beauty because 
she was so kind and lovable and pretty. But 
the two older daughters were proud and 
selfish. 

One day the merchant received a letter 
which called him away from home. When 
he left, he asked each of his daughters what 
he should bring her when he returned. 

The eldest asked for a necklace of pearls; 
the second wanted a dress of silk embroid- 
ered in gold; but Beauty gave her father a 
kiss and said, “ I think I should like best 
of all a bunch of beautiful roses.” 

The merchant reached the city, and there 
he received bad news. His ships had been 
lost in a storm, and all his wealth had 
vanished. 


[ 79 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


He returned homeward, sad and dis- 
couraged. “ I must now move into the lit- 
tle cottage on the farm which I own,’' he 
said to himself, “for I have lost everything 
else. Beauty will not mind,” he added. 
“ She will keep the cottage neat, and love 
me as much as ever; but my two older 
daughters will be cross and unhappy. Woe 
is me, that I have lost my wealth! ” 

As he went on, with these sorrowful 
thoughts for company, he looked up and saw 
before him a light. He was weary and hun- 
gry, so he followed the light, and was amazed 
to come upon a beautiful palace set in the 
midst of the forest. 

But no one answered when he knocked, 
and at last he made bold to enter. He went 
from room to room, but no one appeared. 
At last he came to a room in which there was 
a table richly spread for but a single person. 

“Surely this is a fairy palace!” he ex- 
claimed; and he sat down to eat. 

When he had finished, he looked further, 
[ 80 ] 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


and found a bed all prepared as though 
ready for a guest. So he thankfully un- 
dressed and had a night’s sound sleep. 

In the morning he searched again for the 
owner of the palace, but finding no one, he 
ate the breakfast which was bountifully set 
out, and then he prepared to leave. 

As he walked through an arbor upon 
which hung the most beautiful roses he ever 
had seen, he suddenly remembered Beauty’s 
request. “ I cannot take home a necklace 
of pearls, or a gold embroidered gown,” he 
said sadly, “ but I can take a bunch of roses 
to Beauty.” 

With that he reached up and broke off a 
full cluster, but at the same instant he heard 
a terrible roar, and in the path before him 
there appeared a most hideous Beast. 

“ I gave you food and lodging ” said the 
Beast, “ but I allow no one to touch my 
roses. The penalty for breaking them is 
death! ” 

The frightened merchant fell upon his 
[ 81 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


kiiees and plead with the Beast. He told 
him about Beauty; and that it was only for 
her sake that he had broken off the beau- 
tiful flowers. 

“ Very well,” said the Beast. “ I will let 
you go home upon one condition. You must 
promise to return in a week’s time. If one 
of your daughters chooses to come in your 
place, then you may go free.” 

The poor merchant promised faithfully 
to return, and hastened away. He was glad 
that he could see his daughters once more, 
before he should be slain by the terrible 
beast. But he was sad at heart as he jour- 
neyed toward his home. 

Upon reacliing there, he told his daugh- 
ters how he had lost his wealth, and that 
they must move into the little cottage on the 
farm. Then, handing the bunch of roses to 
Beauty, he told them the story of the Beast, 
and of his promise to return. 

The older daughters bemoaned the loss of 
all their father’s wealth, and blamed Beauty 
[ 82 ] 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 

for the added trouble her roses had brought 
upon them all. 

But Beauty threw her arms about her 
father’s neck, and said, “ I shall go in your 
place, dear Father.” 

“ No, no,” he cried. But Beauty could 
not be turned from her purpose, and when, 
at the end of the week her father started 
for the palace of the Beast, Beauty went by 
his side. 

“ Did you come of your own accord? ” 
asked the Beast, in a terrible voice, when he 
saw her. 

“ Yes,” replied Beauty, turning pale, and 
trembling, for the Beast was very ugly to 
look upon. 

But when Beauty went through the pal- 
ace, she found that the most beautiful rooms 
of all were marked “ Beauty’s Rooms,” and 
she said to her father, “ Perhaps the Beast 
will not kill me, after all. Why should these 
rooms be made ready for me, if I am not to 
live here ? ” 


[ 83 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

So her father went back home somewhat 
comforted. 

That evening, when Beauty’s supper was 
made ready, the Beast came to eat with her. 
Beauty trembled and could scarcely swallow 
a mouthful, though the food was the finest 
and best she ever had tasted. 

“ Do you think me very ugly. Beauty? ” 
asked the Beast. 

“ Yes,” replied Beauty. “ But you may 
be very kind.” 

“ Will you marry me, Beauty? ” asked 
the Beast. 

“ Oh, no,” said Beauty with a shudder. 
“ I could not do that.” 

Everything possible was done at the pal- 
ace to make Beauty comfortable and happy; 
but every evening the Beast came to eat with 
her, and every evening he asked her the same 
question, “ Beauty, will you marry me? ” 

And every evening Beauty answered 
“ No.” 

But the Beast was so kind and good to her 
[ 84 ] 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


that Beauty did not think so much now about 
how ugly he looked, and she began to feel 
sorry for him, he looked so sad when she 
answered “ No.” 

The Beast had placed a magic mirror in 
Beauty’s room, and when she looked in it, 
she had only to wish, and she could see what- 
ever she desired. 

One day she said to herself, ‘‘ I wish I 
could see what they are doing at home, and 
how my father is.” Then she looked in her 
magic mirror, and there she saw her father 
lying ill in the little farm cottage, while her 
sisters sat by looking cross and sulky, and 
the room was in dreadful disorder. 

“ Oh, dear Beast!” she exclaimed, when 
he came in to supper that night, “ my father 
is ill at home, for he fears that I am dead. 
He needs me. May I not go to him and 
comfort him? ” 

“ Will you come back to me. Beauty? ” 
asked the Beast. “ I cannot live without 
you.” 


[ 85 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


Beauty readily promised that she would 
come back in a week. Then the Beast 
slipped a ring upon her finger and said, 
“You have only to turn the ring three times 
on your finger and wish, and you will be at 
home. Turn it again three times and wish, 
when you are ready to retmu. But remem- 
ber,” he added, “ that if you do not return 
when you promise, I shall die.” 

So Beauty promised again, thanked the 
Beast, and, turning her ring, found herself 
at once in her father’s cottage. 

How thankful her father was to see her 
alive! It made him quite well at once. 

Then Beauty — although she was dressed 
in the beautiful garments which the Beast 
had given her — went about setting the cot- 
tage to rights, while her sisters plied her 
with all sorts of questions about the Beast, 
his palace, and the wonderful gifts that he 
showered upon her. 

They were quite ill-natured and envious, 
but Beauty was light-hearted and merry, 
[ 86 ] 


BEAUTY AND THE BEAST 


and her father wondered how he ever could 
let her leave him again. 

In fact, there was so much work to be done 
to make things comfortable, and her father 
and sisters plead so hard for her to remain, 
that Beauty stayed on, until she had been 
gone ten days. Then, at night, she had a 
dream, and in her dream she saw the Beast 
lying in his bower of roses, ill and suffering. 

She wakened, and filled with unhappiness, 
she turned her ring three times, and wished 
herself back. 

At once she found herself in the bower, 
kneeling beside the Beast. 

“ Oh, dear Beast! ” she exclaimed, “ have 
I killed you by my thoughtlessness, when 
you have been so good and kind to me? ” 
The Beast opened his eyes. “ I should 
have died without you,” he said. “ Beauty, 
will you marry me? ” 

“ Yes, dear Beast,” said Beauty, “ for I 
have learned to love you for your goodness 
and kindness.” 


[ 87 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


Instantly the covering of fur fell from the 
Beast, and he arose and stood before her, 
no longer a Beast, but a handsome Prince, 
clothed in garments of silver — for Beauty’s 
words had broken his enchantment. 

So they were married, and lived happily 
ever after. 


[ 88 ] 


THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT 


NCE upon a time there was a Miller 



who lived all alone at his mill, except 
for three apprentices. He had neither wife 
nor child, and he was growing old. 

“ I shall not be long for this world,” he 
said to himself, “ and I must leave my mill 
to one of my apprentices; but which one 
shall it be? ” 

Then the old miller fell a- thinking. He 
was very fond of horses — at least he was 
sure he would be fond of them, for he ad- 
mired them very much, though he never had 
owned one. 

At last he cried, “ I know what I will do. 
I want a fine horse the most of anything I 
can think of. I will send out my three ap- 
prentices, and the one who brings me back 
the finest horse shall have my mill, and all 
else that I leave in the world.” 


[ 89 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


So he called the three apprentices to him, 
and told them all that was in his mind. 
“Now go,’' he’ cried, “ and see who shall 
bring me the finest horse! ” 

So early next morning the three appren- 
tices started out. 

Now one of them, named Hans, was 
smaller and younger than the others, and the 
two older ones said, “ What can he do? One 
of us will be sure to win.” 

When night came on they were weary 
with traveling, and they lay down to sleep 
in a wood. 

Early in the morning the two older ap- 
prentices wakened. “ Let us steal away and 
leave Hans,” said one of them. “ He will 
only hinder us in our search.” And as the 
other agreed, they stole quietly away, leav- 
ing Hans fast asleep in the woods. 

The sun was shining when Hans wakened. 
He rubbed his eyes and looked about. Then 
he shouted. But no trace could he find of 
the two who had gone. 

[ 90 ] 


THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT 

“ Alas, what shall I do,*’ cried Hans. “ I 
do not know the way of the woods.” 

“ Are you in trouble? ” asked a voice close 
beside him. Hans started in surprise, for 
the speaker was none other than a beautiful 
Tortoise-shell Cat. 

“ Yes,” replied Hans, as soon as he could 
speak for amazement. “ I have been left 
here alone in the woods, and I do not know 
my way.” 

“ Ah, I see,” said the Cat pleasantly. 
“ But do not be alarmed. You set out in 
search of a horse, and you shall find one if 
you do as I bid you.” 

Hans was more than ever amazed at this 
speech, but he knew at once that this must 
be an enchanted Cat. 

“ I shall be glad to do as you bid me,” he 
said. 

“ Very well,” answered the Cat. “ You 
are to serve me well and faithfully, as I re- 
quire, and in the end I will give you a hand- 
somer horse than any you ever have seen.” 

[ 91 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

So Hans went gladly with the Cat, and 
Soon they came to a great castle. 

This is where I dwell,” said the Cat 
simply. 

Two servants in livery came out to meet 
them — and they, too, were Cats, as were 
all the attendants and inhabitants of the 
castle. 

After Hans entered the palace he was 
waited upon by Cats, his meals were served 
by Cats, his room was cared' for by Cats: but 
never before had Hans lived upon such fine 
fare, amidst such beautiful surroundings. 

Upon the first day of his stay at the castle, 
the Tortoise-Shell Cat presented him with a 
silver hatchet. “ This is for chopping 
wood,” she said. “ You are to go into the 
forest each day, and chop enough wood to 
keep the castle warm.” 

“What a task!” thought Hans, but he 
said nothing; and when he reached the forest 
he began to swing his silver hatchet. What 
was his surprise to find that a tree fell with 
[ 92 ] 


THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT 

every blow — for it was an enchanted 
hatchet — and in a short time he had wood 
enough to fill all the fire-places in the castle, 
and some to spare. 

Soon after this he was given another task. 
He was to cut the grass in the meadows 
adjoining the castle, so that the horses in the 
stables might have hay. For this task he 
was given a scythe of silver, and a whetstone 
of gold. The scythe — like the hatchet — 
was enchanted, and Hans’ task was com- 
pleted before he would have believed it 
possible. 

Hans’ evenings were spent in visiting with 
the Tortoise-Shell Cat, and they became 
very good friends, indeed, for she was kind 
and intelligent and accomplished. 

The other Cats fmmished entertainment, 
and the days went by quickly. 

One morning the Tortoise-Shell Cat said 
to Hans, “ I want a new castle. It will be 
a small castle, but it is to be made of silver 
and gold, and you must build it for me.” 

[ 93 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


“ I,” cried Hans, thinking that now an 
impossible task had been set before him. 

But the Tortoise-Shell Cat showed him all 
the material for the castle, such as beams, 
and joists, and frames, and they were all of 
silver and gold. And when Hans began 
building, he found that all the parts fitted 
perfectly, and the golden spikes were driven 
in with one blow of his hammer. 

When the castle was completed, Hans ad- 
dressed the Tortoise-Shell Cat, and said, “ I 
have finished the three tasks you set me. 
Now I would like to receive the horse I have 
earned, that I may take him to my master.” 

So the Tortoise-Shell Cat led the way to 
her stables, and there were twelve horses, 
each one handsomer than any that Hans 
ever had seen. 

Hans was almost overcome, between joy 
and fear. Could it be possible that one of 
these horses was to be the reward for his 
labor? 

Then the Tortoise-Shell Cat spoke. “ Go 

[ 94 ] 


THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT 


back to your master,” she said. “ I will 
have two of my servants show you the way. 
See what the other two apprentices have 
brought, but do not be discouraged. In 
three days I will send your horse to you. 
Do not fear.” 

So Hans left the castle, and made his way 
back on foot to the mill, the two Cats in 
livery showing him the way, though he was 
dressed in the old clothes he had worn when 
he reached the castle. 

In the meantime the two older apprentices 
had returned. 

“See, master,” the first one said, “ I have 
brought you a horse, as you wished. It was 
the very best I could find. I hope it will 
please you.” 

Then the Miller looked at the horse, and 
he said, “ How is this? The horse is blind. 
Did you think to cheat me? ” 

Just then the second apprentice ap- 
peared, leading a horse, and he, too, said, 
“ See, master, I have brought you a horse 
[ 95 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


as you wished. It was the very best that I 
could find. I hope it will please you.” 

Then the Miller looked at the horse, and 
he said, “ How is this? The horse is lame. 
Did you think to cheat me? ” 

But he had hardly finished speaking when 
Hans came walking down the road with no 
horse at all. Then they all cried, “ How is 
this, Hans? Where is your horse? ” 

“ My horse will follow me in three days,” 
said Hans, for he was sure he could trust 
the Tortoise-Shell Cat. 

But the other apprentices laughed, and 
the Miller sent him to the goose house to 
sleep. 

The apprentices returned to their work, 
and the Miller was puzzling his brains to 
know who should have the mill, when they 
all heard music, and looking out they saw a 
royal procession coming from the direction 
of the forest. 

First of all came a man in rich livery, 
leading a beautiful black horse that stepped 
[ 96 ] 


THE TORTOISE-SHELL CAT 


daintily and held his head high. After that 
came a golden carriage drawn by eight other 
fine horses, and in the carriage sat a Prin- 
cess of wonderful beauty. And the Prin- 
cess was no other than the Tortoise-Shell 
Cat, who had been changed back to her own 
form after Hans had performed the tasks 
she had given him to do. 

After the carriage of the Princess came 
a long retinue of servants. 

The procession stopped, and the Princess 
spoke to the Miller. “ Here,” she said, is 
the horse which Hans earned by his faithful 
work. Is it as fine as those which your other 
apprentices brought?” 

At that the two older apprentices hung 
their heads in shame. 

“ The horse is yours,” she continued, 
“ but as for Plans, I want him to spend the 
rest of his days at my castle, where he 
proved his Idndness and worth.” 

Then the Princess had Plans clothed in 
beautiful garments, such as a Prince might 
[ 97 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


wear; and she took him up in the carriage 
beside her, and drove away. 

And Hans lived happily in the castle with 
the Princess ever after. 


[ 98 ,] 


THE HEALING WATER 


T here was once a King who was very 
ill, and nothing whatever could be 
found to cure him. 

Now the King had three sons who looked 
so much alike that people who had seen them 
but a few times could not tell one from the 
others. 

One evening as the three sons walked sor- 
rowfully in the palace gardens, they met a 
Little Man, who said to them, “ You grieve 
because your father, the King, is ill. I know 
what will cure him. If one of you will go to 
the enchanted castle in Far-Away Land, 
and dip from its fountain a chalice of its 
healing water, your father shall drink 
it and live. But,’’ continued the Little 
Man, I cannot tell you the way to the 
castle; that is for you to find out. But I 
warn you, ’tis a dangerous journey.” 

[ 99 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

With that the Little Man bowed, and 
vanished. 

“ I will go,” said the eldest son. “ It is 
my right.” 

So he ordered the finest horse in all his 
father’s stables, and set out to find the en- 
chanted castle, and the fountain of healing 
water. 

He had gone but a short distance when he 
met a Dwarf in the road. 

“What is your errand?” asked the 
Dwarf, doffing his cap politely. 

“’Tis my own affair,” replied the eldest 
son haughtily, as he rode by. 

“ A-ha,” said the Dwarf, when he had 
passed. “ Haughty people ask no help 
and they receive none! ” 

The eldest son rode on, and the path he 
took led him between two mountains; and 
presently he found himself wedged in be- 
tween walls of rock. He could go neither 
forward nor backward, nor could he turn 
around. And there he stuck; for the 
[ 100 ] 


THE HEALING WATER 


Dwarf whom he had needlessly slighted had 
willed it so. 

A long time passed, and when the eldest 
son did not return, the second son said, “ I 
fear some evil has befallen our eldest brother. 
But our father, the King, must have the 
healing water. I will set out to seek it.’* 

So he chose the best horse in all his father’s 
stables, and set forth to find the enchanted 
castle, and the fountain of healing water, in 
Far-Away Land. 

But it happened to him as it had to the 
eldest brother, for he, too, met the Dwarf, 
who asked him, “ What is your errand? ” 
And he answered quite as haughtily as his 
brother had done, “ ’Tis my own affair.” 
Then he rode on into the mountains, and 
became wedged between two walls of rock, 
so that he could not go forward nor back- 
ward, nor could he turn around. And there 
he stuck, for the Dwarf had willed it so. 

After a time, when the second son did not 
return, the youngest son said, “ Surely some 
[ 101 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


evil has befallen my brother. But my 
father must have the healing water.” So 
he, too, set out to seek it. 

When he had gone a little way, he met the 
Dwarf, who asked him, “ What is your 
errand? ” 

The youngest son, whose name was Otto, 
stopped and answered respectfully, “ My 
father, the King, is ill. I seek the enchanted 
castle in Far-Away Land, wherein is the 
fountain of healing water.” 

Then the Dwarf said, “ Since you have 
answered me respectfully, I will help you.” 
So he told Prince Otto how to find the way 
to the castle, and he gave him a rod, and 
two wheaten loaves. “ The gates of the 
castle are of heavy iron,” he said, “ and 
guarded by two fierce lions. But if you 
knock upon the gates with this rod, they will 
open; and if you throw a wheaten loaf to 
each lion, they will not attack you. You will 
find the fountain in the court of the castle. 
Dip from it a chalice of water and hasten 
[ 102 ] 


THE HEALING WATER 


away. When the clock strikes twelve, the 
iron gates will close again.’’ 

Then Prince Otto thanked the Dwarf for 
his help, took the rod and the bread and rode 
away. 

And it turned out just a& the Dwarf had 
told him. He reached the castle gates 
safely, and struck them with his rod. They 
opened, and the two lions ceased roaring 
and ate the bread that he threw to them. 
Then he made his way into the broad and 
beautiful court. 

There he saw a wonderful fountain of sil- 
ver, and the water fell from it in a silver 
spray. Beside the fountain stood a lovely 
Princess, who smiled upon the Prince and 
told him he was welcome to fill his chalice 
at the fountain. 

So he filled it, gladly. But, instead of 
hastening away, as the Dwarf had warned 
him, he lingered to speak to the lovely Prin- 
cess. And as he talked with her he forgot 
the lions and the iron gates — till suddenly 
[ 103 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


he heard a distant clock striking the quarter 
before twelve. 

Then he hastened away, but not until the 
Princess had given him a kiss and promised 
to marry him at the end of a year. 

As Prince Otto ran toward the heavy 
gates, they began to move, and as they 
closed, they clipped off a bit of the Prince’s 
heel. But he held close the chalice of heal- 
ing water, and he had the Princess’ promise 
to marry him, so the hurt of his heel mat- 
tered little. 

Then Prince Otto rode away. But he had 
not gone far when he met the Dwarf. 

“How did you fare?” asked the Little 
Man. 

“ I have filled the chalice,” said the Prince, 
“ and I thank you for your aid. But tell 
me,” he added, “ where I may find my 
brothers. My father will grieve if they do 
not return.” 

“ They are haughty men,” said the Dwarf, 
“ and they will be jealous of you for finding 

[ 104 ] 


THE HEALING WATER 


the healing water. You will fare better 
without them.” 

“But my father, the King, will grieve 
sorely if they do not return. And I wish to 
find them.” 

So the Dwarf directed Prince Otto to the 
mountains where his two elder brothers were 
held fast, and he rode rapidly, and released 
them; and they went with him back to their 
father’s palace. 

On the way Prince Otto told them all 
about his adventure, and showed them the 
chalice of healing water. He also told them 
of the lovely Princess, and of her promise 
to marry him at the end of the year. 

But the two elder brothers were jealous, 
as the Dwarf had said they would be, and 
though they pretended to feel glad, they 
really were filled with envy and with angry 
thoughts. 

After a long journey they reached their 
father’s palace. Then there was great re- 
joicing, for the King drank of the healing 
[ 105 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

water and became well and strong once 
more; and all the people were glad and 
praised Prince Otto. 

This caused the elder brothers to become 
more jealous than ever, and though they 
said nothing to each other about it, they both 
resolved to win the Princess away from their 
younger brother. 

Now, as the end of the year drew near, 
the Princess ordered that the approach to 
her castle be paved with pure gold. And 
this was done. And the year was up on the 
day after the pavement was finished. 

Then the Princess said to her servants, 
“ Whoever rides straight up the golden 
pavement and asks for me, admit. But none 
other.’’ 

Not long after, a horseman came riding 
swiftly. He looked like the Prince who had 
filled his chalice at the fountain of healing 
water. It was the eldest brother of Prince 
Otto. T^Tien he saw the golden pavement 
he checked his horse. “ That is only for the 
[ 106 ] 


THE HEALING WATER 


feet of the Princess/^ he said, and riding to 
the left he approached the castle, and asked 
for the maiden. 

But the servants sent him away, as the 
Princess had commanded. 

A little later another horseman came rid- 
ing swiftly. He also looked like the Prince 
who had filled his chalice at the fountain of 
healing water. When he saw the golden 
pavement he turned to the right, saying, ‘‘ I 
will not tread the Princess’ gold underfoot. 
I would put it to better use.” This was the 
next older brother of Prince Otto. And he 
reached the palace and asked for the 
Princess. 

But the servants sent him away, as the 
Princess had commanded. 

Soon after a third horseman — who 
looked exactly like the Prince who had filled 
his chalice at the fountain of healing water 
— came riding swiftly. And this was 
Prince Otto himself, and he was so eager 
to see 3 once more the beautiful Princess who 
[ 107 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

liad won his love, that his eyes looked 
straight ahead, and he did not even notice 
the pavement of gold. 

And he rode straight up the golden pave- 
ment and asked for the Princess. And the 
servants threw wide the doors, and the Prin- 
cess came forth to gi^eet him. 

So they were married, as the Princess had 
promised, and they lived in great content- 
ment ever after. 


[ 108 ] 


THE LAD WHO WONDERED 


O NCE, many years ago, a man who was 
very poor had three sons whose names 
were Peter, Paul, and John, and he sent 
them out into the world to seek their for- 
tune. 

Peter and Paul, the two older sons, took 
matters very much as they came, and spent 
but little thought upon them. But John, 
the youngest son, who was called Jack, was 
always wondering about this, and investi- 
gating that, and trying to find out the reason 
for things. 

The older brothers made fun of this habit 
of his, but this did not trouble Jack at all. 

“ What good does it do you to run after 
this and that?’' they asked him. 

“ Oh, I have the fun of finding out about 
things,” answered the youngest brother with 
a laugh. 


[ 109 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


They had not gone far on their travels 
when they met a servant of the King’s 
household, who stopped to exchange a bit 
of gossip. 

“ What is the news of the day? ” asked 
the brothers. 

“ The King is greatly troubled,” replied 
the servant. “ He wants the great oak that 
grows by the palace cut down, but no one 
can be found who can hew it. As fast as a 
chip is hewed out, two grow in its place, so 
instead of getting rid of the tree, he finds 
it growingdarger and larger.” 

“Is that all the King’s trouble?” asked 
J ack, thinking that even a King might find 
matters worse than this to trouble him. 

“ No, that is not all,” said the servant. 
“ The palace is built upon high ground, and 
there is no well of water near. The ICing 
wants a well dug near the castle, and no one 
can be found to dig it, for all strike solid 
rock as soon as they begin.” 

“ And what will the King give to one who 
[ 110 ] 


THE LAD WHO WONDERED 


hews the tree and digs the well? ” questioned 
Jack again. 

“ He will give him the Princess for his 
wife, and as much gold as he needs,” replied 
the servant. 

“ And do you think you can dig the well, 
and fell the tree? ” asked the older brothers 
scornfully. 

“ It is worth trying for,” said Jack. 

At this the older brothers burst into loud 
laughter, and the servant said, “ But who- 
ever tries and fails, is banished to a lonely 
island. The King has grown ill-tempered 
from having his oak made larger, and his 
ground dug into for naught.” 

With these words the servant went on his 
way, and the three brothers resumed their 
journey. 

As they traveled along a sound of hewing 
and chopping fell on their ears. It seemed 
to come from the midst of a forest high up 
on a hillside. 

“ I wonder what that means! ” said Jack. 

[Ill] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


“ What does it matter to you? ” asked the 
others. 

But Jack sprang up the hillside, while 
Peter and Paul lay down, grumbling at hav- 
ing to wait for him, yet really glad of an 
excuse to sleep by the roadside. 

Presently J ack came upon a strange sight. 
It was that of an ax, hewing of its own 
accord at a great tree, and at the third blow 
the tree fell. 

Then Jack addressed the Ax and said, 
“So you can hew all alone! ’’ 

“ I can,” said the Ax, “ and you had bet- 
ter take me along with you.” 

So Jack took the Ax and put it in his 
leather pouch. Then he joined his brothers 
and they went on together. 

After a time they came to a great heap of 
rock, and on the other side there was a sound 
of digging and shoveling. 

“ I wonder what that is 1 ” exclaimed Jack. 

“ What does it matter to you? ” grumbled 
the brothers. 


[ 112 ] 


THE LAD WHO WONDERED 


But Jack was already climbing over the 
rocks, so the brothers again lay down to 
sleep. 

When Jack reached the farther side of 
the great boulder, he saw another strange 
sight. A spade was digging and shoveling 
right through the rock — and all of its own 
accord. 

Then Jack addressed the Spade, and said, 
‘‘ So you can dig all alone! ” 

“ I can,” said the Spade, “ and you had 
better take me along with you.” 

So Jack took the Spade and put it in his 
leather pouch. Then he joined his brothers 
and they went on together. 

They had not gone far when they came to 
a stream of water. 

“ I wonder where this stream comes 
from! ” cried Jack. 

“ What does it matter to you? ” growled 
his brothers. 

But Jack was already running along the 
bank of the stream, and as it was cool and 
[ns] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


shady there, the brothers once more lay down 
to sleep. 

Jack went on and on, and the stream grew 
smaller and smaller, till at last he came to a 
little cave, and in the cave lay a little acorn, 
out of which the stream was flowing. 

Then J ack addressed the Acorn and said, 
“ So you alone furnish water for this beau- 
tiful stream! ” 

“ I do,’’ said the Acorn, “ and you had 
better take me along with you.” 

So J ack stopped the hole in the acorn with 
moss, and put it in his pocket. Then he 
joined his brothers and they went on 
together. 

Presently they came in sight of the King’s 
palace. 

“ I am going to try for the King’s re- 
ward,” said Jack boldly. 

“ Ho, ho; ha, ha! ” laughed the brothers. 
“ You will end your days on the lonely 
island ; but good luck to you ! We can travel 
the faster alone.” 


[ 114 ] 


THE LAD WHO WONDERED 


Then Jack went boldly to the King and 
told him he was ready to try his hand at 
hewing the oak, and digging the well. 

“You know the penalty if you fail? ” 
growled the King. 

“ Yes, your Majesty,” said Jack. 

“ Then try,” said the King; and Jack 
drew out his Ax and said to it, “ Hew away, 
now.” 

At the third blow the great oak fell I 

Now the Princess was looking from one 
of the windows of the castle, and when she 
saw J ack she said to herself, “ I hope he will 
succeed.” For though Jack’s clothing was 
mean, he had the manner and bearing of a 
true man. 

As soon as the tree had fallen. Jack drew 
out his Spade, and he said to it, “ Dig away, 
now,” and the Spade began to dig right 
through the rock, and in a very short time it 
had a great well made. 

Then Jack let himself into the well, and 
taking the Acorn from his pocket, he laid 
[ 115 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

it in a corner of the rock, and pulled out the 
bit of moss. 

“ Flow away, now,” he cried, as he clam- 
bered out; and in a few moments the well 
was full of water, and a little stream went 
tumbling over the cliff in a beautiful cas- 
cade. 

The King was delighted, and all his fol- 
lowers shouted. Then the King said, “ You 
have done your work well, and the prize is 
yours.” 

Then he clothed Jack in splendid apparel, 
and led him to the Princess, who was all 
blushes; and as soon as the wedding feast 
was made ready, they were married and 
lived happily ever after. 


[ 116 ] 


THE LAD WHO VISITED NORTH 
WIND 


O NCE upon a time there lived a lad in 
the north country whose mother was 
very poor. She was a widow, and they two 
were all alone and the only food they had 
was a little grain. 

One morning his mother said to him, 
“ Lad, go to the wee bit of a barn and bring 
me some grain. I must grind it and bake us 
some cakes. There is nothing left in the 
house to eat.” 

So the lad went to the wee bit of a barn 
and got some grain and came out again. But 
just as he stepped from the door — swish — 
came North Wind and blew away every 
kernel. 

Then the lad went back into the wee bit 
of a barn and got a second bowl of grain, 
and as he stepped out the door — swish — 
[ 117 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


came North Wind again and blew all the 
grain from the bowl a second time. 

Well, at that the lad went back and got 
a third bowl of grain, and that was all the 
grain there was left in the barn. And when 
he went out the door — swish — came North 
Wind a third time, and blew away every 
kernel. 

“ Now we have nothing left to eat,” cried 
the lad. “ I am going to North Wind and 
ask him to give me back our grain.” 

So oiF he started, and he traveled a long, 
long way, but at last he came to North 
Wind’s house, and he went up and knocked 
boldly on the door. 

Then North Wind opened the door with 
a bang! 

“ Good day,” said the lad. 

Good day!' roared North Wind. 

“ I came to return your visit,” said the lad. 

My visit! ” roared North Wind. 

“ Yes,” said the lad, as fearless as could 
be, “ you came to our house and snatched 
[ 118 ] 


THE LAD WHO VISITED NORTH WIND 


away all the grain from my bowl, and now 
my mother and I have nothing left to eat. 
I came to ask you to give it back.’’ 

“ Whe-ee-eew ! ” said North Wind, with 
a shrill whistle. “ As bad as that? Why, I 
didn’t know it was all the grain you had. 
I can’t give it back, because you .see no two 
grains are in the same place. But I’ll do 
the best I can. Here is a table cloth you may 
take home with you. Whenever you are hun- 
gry, say, ‘ Cloth, spread the board, and give 
me somewhat to eat,’ and you will have a 
better feast than ever your grain would 
make.” 

So the lad thanked North Wind, tucked 
the table cloth under his arm, and went away. 

But he had come far, and it grew dark 
before he reached home, so he turned into 
the door of an inn, for a night’s lodging. As 
he was hungry, he sat down beside a table 
and laid his cloth upon it and said, “ Cloth, 
spread the board, and give me somewhat to 
eat.” 


[ 119 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


Immediately the cloth was covered with 
dishes of substantial food, besides dainties 
the like of which the lad never had seen 
before. 

He ate heartily, wliile the landlord and his 
guests stood by in amazement. 

But while the lad slept that night, the 
crafty landlord stole away the magic cloth, 
and put another, which looked the same, in 
its place. 

In the morning the lad tucked the cloth 
under his arm and hastened home, that he 
might share his breakfast with his mother. 

But when he laid the cloth on the table 
at home and spoke the magic words, not even 
a crust of bread appeared. 

“Well,” cried the lad — for he was a 
sturdy lad — “I will go to North Wind 
again.” So off he trudged as before, and 
knocked boldly at the door of North Wind’s 
house. 

Bang! the door opened; and “ Good day,” 
said the lad. 


[ 120 ] 


THE LAD WHO VISITED NORTH WIND 

Good day/* said North Wind. 

“ That table cloth that you gave me is not 
any good/^ said the lad. “ It served me one 
good meal, but no more. I want the grain 
that you snatched from my bowl.’’ 

“ I cannot give you the grain,” said North 
Wind, “ but I will do the best I can. Here 
is a hen. Take it with you, and when you 
have need, say, ‘ Hen, hen, give me a golden 
ducat.’ And every time, the hen will lay a 
golden ducat for you.” 

“ Fine! ” said the lad. Then he thanked 
North Wind, and tucking the hen under his 
arm, he started off. 

When he reached the inn, it was again 
dark, so he turned in for the night. But as 
he had no money to pay for his supper, he 
said to the hen, “ Hen, hen, give me a golden 
ducat.” And the hen laid a golden ducat, 
and the landlord and his guests all stood 
about and wondered. 

But while the lad slept, the landlord took 
away the hen which North Wind had given, 
[121 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


and in its place put one of his own hens of 
the same color. 

When the lad wakened he hastened away 
home to show his mother the wonderful hen. 

But when he said, “Hen, hen, give me a 
golden ducat,” the hen laid nothing at all. 

“ Well,” cried the lad — for he was a 
plucky lad — “ there is nothing for it but I 
must visit North Wind again.” So off he 
started, and reaching North Wind's house 
he knocked boldly on the door. 

“ Good day ! ” said he, as the door banged 
open. 

"'Good day!^^ said North Wind. 

“ I have come for the grain that you 
snatched from my bowl,” said the lad. “ The 
hen that you gave me laid a single ducat, 
and now it lays no more.” 

“ Well, well,” said North Wind. “ We 
must see about this. I cannot give you back 
yom* gi’ain, for no two kernels are in the 
same place. But here is a good stout rope. 
It can tie up a thief in a twinkling, and no 
[ 122 ] 


THE LAD WHO VISITED NORTH WIND 

man can untie it. You have only to say, 
‘ Tie, rope, tie,’ and the thief is caught. If 
you want to let him go, say, ‘ Loosen, rope, 
loosen,’ and the knot will untie.” 

Then North Wind laughed, and the lad 
laughed — for they both had their suspicions 
— and the lad thanked North Wind, and 
tucking the rope under his arm, he started 
off. 

As it grew dark, he reached the inn, and 
turned in for the night. He placed the rope 
beside his bed, and pretended to be asleep. 

Presently the landlord came into his room 
and looked about. He carried in his hand a 
rope which looked just like the one by the 
lad’s bedside. “ I wonder what marvelous 
thing the rope can do,” he said to himself, 
putting out his hand to take it, when the lad 
cried, “ Tie, rope, tie,” and in a twinkling 
the landlord was bound hand and foot. 

“ Now,” said the lad, “ do you give me 
back my magic cloth, and my hen that lays 
gold ducats.” 


123 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

And when the landlord found that no one 
could untie the rope and loose him, he 
ordered the magic cloth and the hen to be 
brought and given to the lad. And when 
the lad had them safe under his arm, he cried, 
“ Loosen, rope, loosen,” and immediately 
the rope fell off, and the lad gathered it up 
and went on his way. 

He went straight home to his mother, and 
said, “ Mother, you shall go hungry no more. 
I have my magic cloth which spreads a feast; 
my good little hen which lays gold ducats; 
and a rope to tie the thief who tries to steal 
them from me. And we will blame North 
Wind no more for snatching away our grain, 
for he is a right good fellow, after all.” 


[1241 


THE GOOSE-GIRL 


O N CE upon a time there was a Princess 
who had been promised in marriage 
to the Prince of a far-away country. 

As the time for the wedding drew near, 
the Queen prepared beautiful dresses and 
rich embroideries and costly ornaments of 
gold and silver and all the finery that a 
young girl loves to wear. 

“ I want the Prince to be proud of his 
bride,” said the Queen, as she tried the 
dresses and ornaments upon the Princess. 
And the Princess smiled happily as she 
thought of the wedding. 

Now the wedding was not to take place 
at the castle of her father, but at the home 
of the Prince in the far-away country. 

It was a long journey, but the King 
chose his most trusty horse, Falada, to 
carry the Princess to her new home; and 
[ 125 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


the Queen chose the most beautiful maid in 
all the King’s household to accompany the 
Princess. And the maid, too, was given a 
fine horse, from the King’s stables, to ride. 

Now Falada, the horse which was to carry 
the Princess, could talk — but only the King 
knew this. 

Just before they started, the Queen 
handed a small packet to the Princess, say- 
ing, “ Keep this with you. It contains a 
lock of my hair, and it will act as a charm. 
When you are in trouble it will help you.” 

So the Princess thanked her mother with 
tears in her eyes ; and she said “ Farewell ” 
to the King, and all the household, and set 
off upon her journey. 

But the maid, whom the Queen had 
chosen, was envious of the Princess, and as 
they rode on she kept thinking, “ Why 
should the Princess have the best of every- 
thing? The Queen chose me because of my 
beauty; perhaps I can find a way to win the 
Prince for myself.” 

[ 126 ] 


THE GOOSE-GIRL 


Presently they came to a stream of clear 
water, and the Princess said to the maid, 
“ Bring me a cup of water to drink. I am 
thirsty from the dust of the way.” 

She drew from her bodice a golden cup 
which the Queen had given her; but the 
maid replied insolently, “ If you wish a 
drink, get it for yourself. Why should I 
wait upon you? ” 

Now the Princess was very young, and 
she knew not what to do. But her thirst was 
so great that she slipped from off her horse 
and knelt beside the stream to drink. And 
as she stooped, the packet which the Queen 
had given her, slipped from her bodice into 
the stream. 

The Princess’ eyes were so blinded with 
tears that she did not see it, but her maid saw 
it, and was glad. “ Now she is no longer 
protected by her charm, I can do what I 
will,” she said to herself. 

As the Princess rose to remount Falada, 
she was astonished to see her maid upon 
[ 127 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

Falada’s back. “ Give me your veil, and 
your embroidered gown,” said the maid, 
“ and put on my coarse dress in their place. 
I shall present myself as the bride, and if 
you dare to contradict me, I shall have you 
thrown into a dungeon.” 

The poor Princess could do nothing but 
weep, and she mounted the horse which had 
been given her maid and followed sorrow- 
fully on till they came to the castle. 

There the maid presented herself as the 
true Princess, and asked that some work 
be given the young maid she had brought 
with her as a companion. 

So the true Princess was sent into the 
field to help the goose-boy tend the geese, 
while the maid was led into the castle where 
there was great rejoicing and feasting. 

For several days the feasting contin- 
ued, and each day the true Princess went 
into the fields with Curdken, the goose-boy, 
to tend the geese. 

On the way to the fields they had to pass 
[ 128 ] 


THE GOOSE-GIRL 


the stables where the King’s horses were 
kept, and each time they passed, the 
Princess cried out: 

“ Oh, Falada, Falada, what would my 
mother say? ” 

And a voice from the stables answered, 

“ Oh, Princess, Princess, with the geese 
you shall not stay.” 

Then the Princess would go on somewhat 
comforted, while Curdken wondered, but 
said nothing at all. 

Out in the fields the Princess let down 
her beautiful hair, which was all of pure 
gold, that she might dress it. 

When Curdken saw this he said, ‘‘ Oh, let 
me cut off a lock. It is all of shining gold.” 
And he stretched out his hand to grasp it. 
But the Princess called out, 

“ Breeze, blow Curdken’s hat away! ” 

And hardly had she spoken when Curd- 
ken’s hat was lifted from his head, and 
carried quite outside the field. 

When he had caught his hat and come 
[ 129 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


back, the Princess’ hair was all dressed, and 
coiled softly about her head, where it shone 
like a golden crown. 

Every day the Princess called to Falada, 
“ Oh, Falada, Falada, what would my 
mother say? ” 

And the voice from the stables answered, 
“ Oh, Princess, Princess, with the geese 
you shall not stay.” 

And every day the Princess let down 
her shining golden hair, and when Curdken 
would snatch a bit of its gold, she cried, 

“ Breeze, blow Curdken’s hat away! ” 
And immediately Curdken’s hat would 
fly quite out of the field. 

And every day the feasting and rejoicing 
continued in the castle. 

Now the King of the far-away countiy 
was very fond of horses, and one morning 
as he went through his stables he stopped 
before Falada’s stall and exclaimed, “ What 
a magnificent horse! It is the one which 
the Princess rode.” 


[ 180 ] 


THE GOOSE-GIRL 


No sooner had he said this than Falada 
answered him, 

“ The Princess true is with the geese, 

The Princess false is at the feast.” 

The King stood still in astonishment. 
“ What is this I hear? ” he cried. 

“ The Princess true is with the geese. 

The Princess false is at the feast.” 
repeated Falada. 

As the King hurried from the stables he 
almost tripped over Curdken. “ Your Maj- 
esty,” said Curdken, ‘‘ I cannot have this 
strange maid with me longer,” and he was 
all a-tremble with fright. 

Then he told the King how the goose- 
girl spoke as she passed the stable, and 
of the voice that answered. And he told 
the King of the goose-girl’s golden hair, and 
of how the breeze obeyed her. 

When he had finished the King himself 
was all a-tremble with amazement, and he 
went straight to the field where the Princess 
was tending the geese. 

[ 131 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


At first she was afraid to tell him her 
story, because her maid had said she should 
be thrown into a dungeon. But the King 
told her not to fear. “ Only tell me the 
truth,” he said, “ and I will protect you. I 
am the King.” 

Then she told him all, and it was just 
as Falada had spoken. 

So the King took her by the hand and 
hurried to the castle. And he had her 
dressed in beautiful garments and led her 
to the Prince. 

The Bishop was about to marry the 
Prince to the false Princess, but when she 
saw the King leading the true Princess into 
the room, dressed all in beautiful garments, 
she fled from the castle, and no one ever saw 
her again. 

So the Prince was married to the true 
Princess, and they lived happily ever after. 


[ 182 ] 


THE SPRING IN THE VALLEY 


O N a large island, in the midst of a 
great sea, there is a beautiful lake 
whose waters shine clear as crystal. On a 
quiet night — if your eyes are bright enough 
— you may look down, down through the 
water to its deepest depth, and there behold 
a wonderful sight. 

You will see a great stone palace, with 
turrets and arches, and gardens with flow- 
ers and shrubs and trees. You will see a 
high, round wall, with an opening like a 
door ; and a solitary man, with a crown upon 
his head, who seems always to be searching, 
searching. 

Now, you should notice this wall and its 
opening most particularly, for without it 
there would be no story for me to tell. 

Once, long years ago, where the lake now 
lies, there was just a quiet green valley; and 
[ 133 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


bubbling up from the midst of the valle}* 
there was a spring of cool, crystal-clear 
water. 

All the people of the valley used the 
water. They used it to make broth for the 
babies, and porridge for the old men and 
women. They used it to cool the fevered 
brows and parched lips of those who were 
sick. Travelers drank of it, and blessed 
heaven for water. 

Now there was a King living in the valley, 
and the spring was close beside his palace 
gates. And as the King saw the great num- 
bers of people going day after day to the 
spring for water, he said to himself, “ This 
will never do. There is no such water as 
this in all the world, yet every peasant 
drinks of it as freely as the King. Surely 
this should not be ! ” So he determined to 
build a high wall about the spring, and to 
make a door in the wall. And when it was 
finished he locked the door with a golden 
key. 


[ 184 ] 


THE SPRING IN THE VALLEY 


“ Now,” said he, “ I, the King, have con- 
trol of the waters, and this is as it should be. 
No one can draw unless they use my golden 
key.” 

Now the King had one daughter, and he 
declared, “ Only my daughter shall be al- 
lowed to bring water from the spring, and 
to use the golden key! ” 

The people began to cry and to beg for 
water. But the King shut himself away 
and would not hear them. 

Then he thought within himself, “ I 
will give a great banquet. Everyone in the 
valley shall be made welcome, rich and poor 
alike. And at the banquet I will give them 
as much of the spring water as they wish 
to drink. Then they will be grateful.” 

So the banquet was announced, and the 
King’s couriers rode forth and bade all the 
people come. 

When the time arrived, the King’s ban- 
queting halls were thronged. All the 
people of the valley were there. And be- 
[ 135 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


sides, there came from a neighboring 
country a young nobleman of such grace 
and manly bearing that the King made him 
most welcome. And the young nobleman 
danced long with the King’s daughter, and 
sat beside her at the banquet. 

There was one other stranger at the feast: 
an old woman whom no one knew. But as 
all who presented themselves were made 
welcome, no one asked whence she came. 

Now as they all feasted, the young noble- 
man said to the King, “ I have heard much 
of the water of your spring. I should like 
to taste it.” 

This was just what the King had waited 
for, and now he ordered his daughter to 
bring water in plenty, for all the people to 
drink. 

But his daughter did not like to carry the 
water, for she thought it a task which the 
servants should perform. Then the young 
nobleman at her side said, “ I will gladly go 
and help you.” 


[ 136 ] 


THE SPRING IN THE VALLEY 


As they passed out the door of the ban- 
queting hall, the old woman, whom no one 
knew, accosted the King’s daughter. She 
held forth a metal vessel, beautifully 
wrought, and set with great glittering jew- 
els, and as she did so, she said, “ I have 
brought this as a gift to you. It is a magic 
vessel for cariying water. When it is full, 
the water will continue to flow from it, so 
that you need fill it but once and all the 
people will be supplied.” 

“ Oh, thank you ! ” cried the King’s 
daughter, taking the beautiful vessel in her 
hands, and hastening to the spring. 

She turned the golden key, and the young 
nobleman pushed open the door. Then she 
knelt to fill the vessel, but as she did so 
it slipped from her hands and fell into the 
spring. 

Immediately the water gushed forth in a 
mighty stream. It filled the wall ; it rushed 
through the door, and poured itself forth 
into the valley. 


[1S7] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


The young nobleman grasped the hand of 
the King’s daughter, and together they ran 
to the palace. But the water reached there 
as soon as they. 

“ Run, run for your lives ! ” they cried. 
“ The water is filling the valley! ” 

Then all the people sprang to their feet. 
But above the confusion and noise the voice 
of the strange woman was heard, as she 
cried, ‘‘Now shall the people have w^ater in 
abundance. And it shall not cease to flow 
till the magic vessel which I gave to the 
King’s daughter is found and removed from 
the spring.” 

Then all the people ran, and reached 
places of safety — all but the King who 
stayed behind to search for the magic vessel. 

The water continued to flow till it filled 
all the valley, and became a great lake as it 
is to this day; and the people built their 
homes about the lake, where they had water 
in abundance and thanked heaven for it. 

The young nobleman married the King’s 
[138 1 


THE SPRING IN THE VALLEY 


daughter, and took her away to his own 
country. 

The King, who stayed behind, was over- 
taken, but he was not drowned. Instead, 
he was condemned to live beneath the water, 
which he had wanted only for himself, and 
there he continues to search for the magic 
vessel — but he never has found it to this 
day. 


[ 139 ] 


THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX 
NCE upon a time there was a poor 



young man who started out to seek 
his fortune. 

He traveled many, many miles, and noth- 
ing whatever happened. 

“ There is no luck in this,” he said to 
himself. “ I hope my fortunes will soon 
mend.” 

Even as he spoke, his foot struck some- 
thing hard in the path. It sounded like 
metal. He brushed aside the forest leaves 
and brought to view something white and 
shining. 

Picking up the object, he examined it, 
and to his surprise found it to be a silver 
snuff box. 

“ Some fine gentleman must have dropped 
it,” he thought, for the box was set with 
brilliant jewels. 


[ 140 ] 


THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX 


He opened it, and as he did so the box 
said, “ Ask me, and I will help you.” 

The young man was so astonished that 
he almost dropped the box, and quite too 
frightened to do anything but snap the lid 
quickly shut. 

But he put the box safely away in his 
pocket and traveled on. 

Toward night he came in sight of a great 
stone castle, such as he never had seen 
before. 

He walked all around it, wondering at its 
size and its magnificence. As he reached the 
front gates, there came out a man wearing 
beautiful garments, and with a crown upon 
his head. So the young man knew that he 
was a king, and that this must be a king’s 
castle. 

The young man lay down that night in 
the woods opposite the castle, to sleep. And 
while he slept, he dreamed. 

He dreamed that he was the owner of a 
castle even grander than that of the King, 
[ 141 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


and his castle stood so close to the castle of 
the King, that the King was envious of him. 

He wakened from his dream. It was 
still dark. He turned over, and as he did 
so he felt the silver snuff box in his pocket. 
Then he remembered that the snuff box had 
said, “ Ask me, and I will help you,” and 
he thought, “ Why not try it? ” 

So he took the snuff box from his 
pocket and opened it. “ Ask me, and I will 
help you,” it said as before. 

“ Well then,” said the youth, ‘‘ I ask for 
a castle finer and larger than that of the 
King. I want it to sparkle with gold and 
jewels. Can you help me to that? ” 

He had scarcely finished speaking when 
a most magnificent building rose as if by 
magic from the ground. 

And in the morning, when the King saw 
it, he was too greatly astonished for words, 
for his own castle looked quite mean be- 
side it. 

He hastened to the golden castle, and 

[ 142 ] 


THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX 


when he saw its owner he said, “ Young man, 
I will give you my daughter in marriage 
if we may all come to your castle to live.” 

And the young man said, “ Let me see 
your daughter first.” 

So the King re toned and brought his 
daughter, the Princess; and she was so 
modest and so beautiful that the young man 
fell in love with her at once, and he was 
glad to do as the King wished. 

So the young man and the Princess were 
married, and they had everything that they 
could desire. And the King and Queen 
came to live with them in the golden castle. 

But the Queen was jealous and envious, 
and when she learned about the magic snuff 
box, she could not rest day or night for 
thinking how she could get possession of it. 

At last she bribed one of the servants to 
find out where the young man, who was now 
a Prince, kept the box at night. Then she 
bribed another servant to get the box and 
bring it to her. 


[ 143 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


As soon as she had the box in her hands 
she opened it, and it said, “ Ask me, and 
I will help you.” 

Then the Queen said, “ I want this golden 
castle set down far across the sea, where 
the King and I may live in it and have it for 
our own.” 

And almost as soon as she had spoken, 
it was done. 

But the Prince and the Princess, with 
their children, were left behind, and had 
only the stone castle to live in; and as the 
magic snuff box was gone, they became very 
poor, because the Prince could no longer 
have things for the asking. 

Then one day the Prince said to the 
Princess, his wife, “ I will set forth and 
seek my golden castle, and my magic snuff 
box of silver and jewels.” 

So, bidding the Princess and his children 
a sorrowful farewell, he journeyed forth. 

He traveled a long, long distance, and at 
last he came to the house of the Moon. 

[ 144 ] 


THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX 


He told his story, and when he had fin- 
ished he asked, “ Oh, Moon, in your travels 
over land and sea, have your rays shone 
upon my castle of gold with its jeweled 
casements? ” 

And the Moon replied, “No, my son; 
no such castle have I seen. But go to the 
Sun. His rays shine farther and more 
brightly than mine. Perhaps he has seen 
it.” 

So the Prince journeyed on again for a 
long, long distance, till at last he came to 
the house of the Sun. 

He told his story, and when he had fin- 
ished, he asked, “ Oh, Sun, in your travels 
over land and sea, have your rays shone 
upon my castle of gold, with its jeweled 
casements? ” 

And the Sun replied, “ No, my son, no 
such castle have I seen. But go to the 
Wind. He penetrates where my rays can- 
not go. Perhaps he has seen it.” 

So the Prince journeyed on again for a 
[ 145 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


long, long distance, and at last he came to 
the house of the Wind. 

He told his story, and when he had 
finished he asked, “ Oh, Wind, in your jour- 
neys over land and sea, have you searched 
out my castle of gold, with its jeweled case- 
ments? ” 

And the Wind answered, “ Yes, my son, 
such a castle have I found. It is far away 
over the water. But come with me, and 
you shall soon reach it.” 

With that he picked up the young Prince 
and carried him, more swiftly than thought, 
across the great sea, and set him down in 
a woods. And there, close at hand, he beheld 
his golden castle! 

That night he hid himself in the woods till 
all the castle lights were out, and then he 
let himself in with the golden key, which 
he had carried all these years since his castle 
was stolen away. And he crept up to the 
King’s bed chamber, and found the magic 
snuff box. 


[ 1 ^ 0 ] 


THE MAGIC SNUFF BOX 


He quickly opened the lid, and at once 
the box said, “ Ask me, and I will help you.” 

At that the King and Queen wakened, 
and they called out, “ Who is here? Help! 
Help! ” 

But the Prince was too quick for them. 
Before the courtiers, and the ladies-in- 
waiting, and the soldiers could reach the 
chamber, he cried, “ Take me with my 
golden castle, back to my wife and children; 
but leave the King and Queen here in this 
land beyond the sea.” 

And it was done ! 

The King and Queen found themselves 
left without a roof over their heads; but the 
Prince, with his golden castle, and his magic 
snufF box, was back in his own land with his 
wife and children. 

And they were happy all the rest of their 
days. 


[ 147 ] 


OLD MOTHER HOLLE 


O NCE, long ago, there were two sisters 
who lived together with their mother, 
who was a widow. 

Now, as sometimes happens, the two sis- 
ters were not a bit alike. One had bright 
hair and a fair skin, and she was as sweet 
and sunny in character as she was good to 
look upon. 

The other sister was dark and ill-favored, 
while in character she was sullen and selfish. 
But, strange as it may seem, the mother 
cared more for the dark sister, whose name 
was Ellen, than she did for Esther, the fair- 
haired daughter. She not only gave Ellen 
better food and better clothes, but Ellen’s 
tasks were always light, while Esther worked 
hard from dawn till dark. 

When the other tasks were finished, 
Esther was set to spin; and as she loved the 

[ 148 ] 


OLD MOTHER HOLLE 


birds and the flowers and the grass, she took 
her spindle and sat down beside the well. 

She called to the birds, and they came and 
sang to her as she worked, and she tried to 
forget the harsh treatment and the unkind 
words of her mother and sister. 

But now and then her eyes would fill with 
tears, and so it happened one day, that as she 
worked, she pricked her finger so badly that 
the blood came and stained her spindle. 

‘‘ What shall I do? ” she cried in alarm. 
“ If my mother sees my spindle so stained, 
I know not what she will do to me ! 

So she leaned far over the edge of the 
well, hoping to reach the water and wash 
her spindle, but instead it slipped from her 
hand and dropped to the bottom of the well. 
With a cry Esther leaned forward to catch 
it, but by this she lost her balance and she, 
too, fell into the well. 

But then something very wonderful hap- 
pened. Instead of finding herself in a wet, 
disagreeable place, she was in a green 
[ 149 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


meadow where flowers were blooming, and 
the air was soft and sweet. She walked 
along a little path which lay before her, and 
presently she saw, beside the path, a great 
oven built of bricks, and inside the oven were 
many, many loaves of bread. 

“ Take us out! Take us out! ” the loaves 
called to Esther. “We are baked just 
enough. Oh, do take us out! ” 

So Esther stopped and took all the loaves 
of bread from the oven, and then she went 
on down the winding path. 

After awhile she came to an apple tree, 
loaded down with ripe, rosy-cheeked apples. 

“ Shake me! Shake me! ” cried the tree 
to Esther. “ My apples are ripe. Do 
shake them down ! ” 

So Esther stopped and shook the tree 
till all the ripe apples lay on the ground, 
and then she went on down the winding 
path. 

In a little while she came to a cottage, 
and there sat an old lady in the doorway. 

[ 150 ] 


OLD MOTHER HOLLE 


“ I have watched you as you came down 
the winding path,” said the old lady, whose 
name was Mother Holle, “ and I would like 
you for a maid. I know you are willing, 
and I am sure you are neat, and that is all I 
require.” 

Esther saw that Mother Holle looked 
kind and pleasant, so she was very glad to 
stop awhile. 

Every morning Esther shook old Mother 
Holle’s feather bed, and then the people 
cried, “ Oh, see, the snow is falling.” And 
Mother Holle gave Esther good food and 
the kindest treatment. 

But after a time Esther said, “ Mother 
Holle, you have been good to me, and I 
have been happy here, but I must go home 
to my mother and sister.” 

Then Mother Holle said, “ It is right that 
you should go. Come, I will show you the 
way, for you have been a good girl.” Then 
she led her out through a door, and as Esther 
passed through it a whole shower of gold fell 
[ 151 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


upon her, so that her apron and all her 
pockets were filled quite full. 

Then Mother Holle pointed the way, and 
Esther ran home to her mother and sister. 
And when she showed them all the gold that 
she had brought, they treated her quite 
kindly. 

The very next day Ellen said that she, 
too, was going to find Mother Holle, for 
she wanted an apronful of gold. So she 
dropped her spindle into the well, and then 
she jumped in after it. And it happened to 
her as it had to Esther, for she found herself 
in a beautiful green meadow, and before 
her was the winding path. 

She had not gone far when she came to 
the great oven built of bricks, and full of 
newly-made bread. 

“ Take us out! Take us out! ” cried the 
loaves. “We are baked just right. Oh, 
do take us out ! ” 

“ Why should I? ” answered Ellen. “ I 
do not want to dirty my hands with your 
[ 152 ] 


OLD MOTHER HOLLE 


oven.” And she ran on down the winding 
path. 

After awhile she came to the apple tree, 
all loaded down with ripe, rosy-cheeked 
apples. 

“ Shake me I Shake me!” cried the tree 
to Ellen. “ My apples are ripe. Do shake 
them down! ” 

“ Why should I ? ” answered Ellen. 
“ Your bark is rough. It would hurt my 
hands.” Then she ran on down the winding 
path. 

In a little while she came to the cottage, 
and Mother HoUe was sitting in the door- 
way. 

“I have come to be your maid,” Ellen 
said, without waiting for Mother HoUe to 
ask her. 

“ Very well,” said Mother HoUe, ‘‘ but 
you must be wiUing and neat, and shake my 
feather bed ever}^ day.” 

EUen promised, and the first day she did 
very well. She shook the feather bed, and 
[15S] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 

the people cried, “ Oh, see, the snow is 
falling.” 

The second day she only turned the 
feather bed over; and the third day she did 
not think of it at all. 

“ You are a lazy girl,” said Mother Holle, 
“ and I cannot keep you for my maid.” 

Ellen was secretly glad, but she only said, 
‘‘ Then I must go home to my mother. Will 
you show me the way? ” 

“ Yes,” answered Mother Holle, “ I will 
show you the way.” 

“Now for the golden shower,” thought 
Ellen, as Mother Holle led her to the door. 
But when she passed through, a pot of black 
dye tumbled down upon her. 

“ That is all you have earned,” said old 
Mother Holle, as she turned back into the 
cottage. 

And when Ellen reached home, instead of 
an apronful of gold to show, she had only 
her dii'ty clothes. 


[ 154 ] 


ERIC NO-LUCK 


NCE upon a time there was a hunter 



named Eric, who went day after day 
into the woods in search of game — but no 
game did he bag! And this happened so 
often that at last he came by his friends to 
be called Eric No-Luck. 

One da}^’ when, as usual, he was roaming 
the woods, he sat down to rest at the mouth 
of a cave where the air was cool. And as 
he thus sat, thinking of his ill-luck and his 
poverty, he heard a tiny voice which seemed 
to come from far, far back in the cave. 

“ Help me! Help me! ” cried the voice; 
but it was such a tiny voice that it sounded 
like the chirp of a bird. 

Eric’s curiosity was aroused, and as he 
was a bold man and fond of adventnre, he 
entered the cave and looked about. 

It was dark in the cave; the air was heavy, 


[ 155 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


and the bottom was covered with stones and 
slime. 

“Be careful,” cried the tiny voice again, 
as Eric advanced. “ Mind where you step, 
or you may go a thousand feet down to the 
bottom of this cavern.” 

“Who are you?” called Eric, “and 
where are you? ” 

“ I am here in this jar,” called the tiny 
voice. “ I was shut in the jar seventy years 
ago by a wicked magician — and no one has 
come to the cave since. Oh, do let me out! 
I will repay you well if you will.” 

So Eric No-Luck picked his way care- 
fully over the stones, till he was far, far 
back in the cave. Then he saw a soft glow 
of light, and upon reaching it he found that 
the glow came from a metal jar; and the 
cover of the jar was securely fastened by a 
heavy seal. 

Again the voice cried, “ I am here; here 
in the jar. Just break the seal and out I 
come. Then I will repay you.” 

[ 156 ] 


ERIC NO-LUCK 


“ But how am I to know that you will 
repay me? ” asked Eric. 

“ Try me! Try me! ” said the tiny voice. 

“ I believe I will,” answered Eric, and 
with that he broke the seal, lifted the cover 
of the jar, and looked in. But not a thing 
did he see! 

“ Where are you? ” cried Eric. “ Are you 
fooling me? ” 

“ No,” said the voice, close beside Eric’s 
ear, “ I am right here; but no man can see 
me, for to mortals I am invisible. But for 
three days you may ask of me whatever you 
will, and you shall have your wish. When 
you need me, call ‘ Murza,’ and say these 
words : ‘ Go where thou wilt, and bring what 
thou wilt.’ ” 

So Eric made his way out of the cave and 
once more took up the bow and arrows he 
had left at the entrance. 

“ I wish I might find a deer in the forest,” 
he said. And then he thought, “ Why not 
try my little friend at the trick? ” So he 
[ 157 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


called “Murza; go where thou wilt and 
bring what thou wilt.” 

Hardly had he finished when he heard 
a crackling of branches, and a fine young 
deer stood under the trees before him. 
Swiftly he sped an arrow and the deer 
dropped. 

“ Ah-ha! ” cried Eric No-Luck. “ Wait 
till I show this to my friends! ” 

He started to carry the deer home, but 
he had not gone far when he met a gypsy 
leading a fine horse, and the gypsy offered 
the horse for sale. 

“ I wish I had the money to buy it,” said 
Eric No-Luck, “ then I could carry the deer 
home in fine style.” Then again he thought 
of his invisible friend. 

“ Murza,” he cried, “ go where thou wilt, 
and bring what thou wilt.” 

In a moment he felt something hard in 
his pocket, and thrusting in his hand, he 
drew out a fist full of gold pieces. 

With these he paid for the horse, and 
[ 158 ] 


ERIC NO-LUCK 


throwing the deer across its back, he 
mounted and rode toward home like a noble- 
man. 

But before he had cleared the wood, he 
heard horses behind him, and turning he 
faced a whole band of robbers who had 
learned from the gypsy of the gold he was 
carrying. 

“ Murza,’’ he quickly called, “ go where 
thou wilt, and bring what thou wilt.” He 
had hardly finished speaking when there was 
a noise of galloping and shouting, as though 
a large party of mounted men were coming 
that way. And when they heard it, the rob- 
bers turned their horses and dashed off as 
fast as they could go. 

“ Thanks, good Murza,” said Eric No- 
Luck. “ Thou are truly keeping thy 
promise! ” 

As Eric rode on he was presently joined 
by a youth who rode as fine a horse as his 
own, and who was dressed like a knight. 
He had a mantle thrown over his shoulders, 

[ 159 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


and a plume in his hat, and a sword hung 
by his side. 

“ You have a fine horse,” said the youth. 
“ If ’twere not for your deer I would think 
you were on your way to join the Czar’s 
regiment.” 

“ And what is the regiment to do? ” asked 
Eric No- Luck. 

“ Have 5^ou not heard? ” asked the youth. 
‘‘ A large band of robbers is in the woods, 
and they threaten to attack the palace itself. 
They are dangerous men, and well armed, 
and they must be driven from the country.” 

“ And does the Czar need a regiment to 
disperse these robbers?” asked Eric No- 
Luck, thinking of his own recent encounter. 

“ Indeed, you would think so, if you had 
heard of the deeds they have done,” replied 
the youth, as he galloped away. 

Eric rode on home with his deer, and 
when he reached there he cried, “ Here, 
friends, share the deer amongst you. I am 
going in search of better game.” 

[ 160 ] 


ERIC NO-LUCK 


“ How is this, Eric No-Liick? ” asked the 
men, but Eric had galloped away, while the 
men stood and gaped in astonishment. 

Now Eric had heard wonderful stories of 
the grace and beauty of the Princess at the 
castle, the Czar’s daughter, and in his mind 
he had formed a plan which he counted upon 
Murza to help him carry out. 

“ I must be better dressed,” he said to 
himself, “ before I can present myself to the 
Czar.” So he called, ‘‘Murza; go where 
thou wilt, and bring what you .wilt.” And 
in a twinkling he was clothed in gold 
embroidered garments, with plumes in his 
hat, and a jeweled sword by his side. 

Then he rode gaily on, and soon he came 
in sight of the Czar’s castle. There were 
horsemen about who had come to join the 
Czar’s regiment, but none was dressed as 
magnificently as Eric No-Luck. 

He made his way boldly to the castle and 
asked an audience with the Czar, and when 
he was admitted, he said, “ Oh, Czar, I have 
[ 161 ] 


FAVORITE FAIRY TALES RETOLD 


come to rid you of the bold robbers who have 
threatened your castle. Send these men 
away. I have no need of them.” 

The Czar was astonished. “ How can you 
do this ? ” he asked. 

“ I have an invisible friend who will help 
me,” answered Eric, “ and if I succeed, I 
want to marry your daughter.” 

At this the Princess began to shed tears, 
but Eric quickly said, ‘‘ Murza, go where 
thou wilt, and bring what thou wilt,” and 
after that the Princess* tear drops turned 
to tiny golden rose buds, to diamonds, and 
to opals as they fell. 

Then the Princess stopped weeping, for 
very wonder, and began to look favorably 
upon Eric No-Luck; and the Czar said, 
“ Very well; try your luck with the robbers. 
If you succeed, you may marry my daugh- 
ter; but if you fail, off goes your head.” 

The Czar frowned fearfully as he said 
this, and Eric trembled a little, for the odds 
were veiy great; but he said softly, “ Murza, 
[ 162 ] 


ERIC NO-LUCK 


go where thou wilt, and bring what thou 
wilt.” 

Immediately the castle was surrounded 
with the most brilliant troop of soldiers ever 
seen in the land, and at a signal from Eric, 
they dashed away into the woods. And the 
robbers scattered before them like dust be- 
fore the wind, and were seen no more in the 
land. 

There was a magnificent wedding at the 
palace when Eric was married to the 
Princess ; and all his friends cried, “ He shall 
no longer be Eric No-Luck; but Eric the 
Lucky shall be his name.” 


[ 168 ] 





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